Labour market overview, 28 February 2026

As of 28 February 2026, 315 646 people were registered as unemployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina.  Compared to a month earlier, the number of the unemployed was lower by 1 092 persons or 0.34%.  Of the total number of job seekers, 187 730 or 59.47% were women.  Compared to the same period a year earlier, unemployment in BiH was lower by 8 668 persons or 2.67%. 

Unemployment decreased by 811 persons (0.32%) in the Federation of BiH and by 289 persons (0.58%) in Republika Srpska and it increased by 8 persons (0.07%) in the Brčko District of BiH. by

The structure of job seekers as of 28 February 2026 was as follows:

Unskilled workers: 90 958 or 28.82%, comprising 36 271 (28.36%) men and 54 687 (29.13%) women

Semi-skilled workers/low educational background: 4 084 or 1.29%, comprising 1 930 (1.51%) men and 2 154 (1.15%) women

Skilled workers: 99 189 or 31.42%, comprising 49 985 (39.08%) men and 49 204 (26.21%) women

Highly skilled workers: 579 or 0.18%, comprising 411 (0.32%) men and 168 (0.09%) women

Secondary school qualifications: 90 877 or 28.79%, comprising 30 632 (23.95%) men and 60 245 (32.09%) women

Two-year post-secondary education: 4 837 or 1.53%, comprising 1 630 (1.27%) men and 3 207 (1.71%) women

University degree: 25 122 or 7.96%, comprising 7 057 (5.52%) men and 18 065 (9.62%) women

Within the total number of registered unemployed people, 9 760 were newly added to the register in February 2026, of whom 4 661 were women.  The total number of people who were deregistered amounted to 10 899, of whom 5 626 were women.  Of the total number of people who were deregistered, 6 954 or 63.80% were placed in employment, of whom 3 716 or 53.44% were women.  

In February 2026, employers reported 2 771 new job vacancies to public employment services in BiH, of which 698 were for women. At the same time, the registered number of people whose employment terminated during the reported period amounted to 7 324.  The registered number of women whose employment terminated during the reporting period was 3 502 or 47.81%.

According to the BiH Agency for Statistics, the number of people in paid work in BiH in January 2026 amounted to 850 095, of whom 390 182 were women.  Compared to December 2025, the total number of people in work shrank by 0.5%, and the number of women in work also shrank by 0.3%. 

According to the results of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for the fourth quarter of 2025, the labour force in BiH (economically active population) comprised 1 443 000 people and the number of inactive people amounted to 1 430 000. 

The labour force comprised 1 282 000 people in work and 161 000 unemployed people. The LFS unemployment rate in the fourth quarter of 2025 was substantially lower than the administrative one and it stood at 11.1% at the level of BiH.

The number of people in work in the fourth quarter of 2025 was higher by 0.2% compared to the third quarter of 2025, while the number of the unemployed decreased by 0.6%.

The unemployment rate in the fourth quarter stood at 11.1% and it was lower by 0.1 percentage points compared to the third quarter of 2025 (11.2%).  The LFS employment rate in the fourth quarter of 2025 stood at 44.6% and it was higher by 0.1 percentage points compared to the third quarter of 2025 (44.5%).

The youth (aged 15-24) unemployment rate in BiH in the fourth quarter of 2025 was 27.9%, which is a decrease of 0.6 percentage points compared to the third quarter of 2025 (33.5%).