Labour market situation as of 31 October 2025



As of 31 October 2025, 315 478 people were registered as unemployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina.  Compared to a month earlier, the number of the unemployed was lower by 681 persons or 0.22%.  Of the total number of job seekers, 188 199 or 59.66% were women.  Compared to the same period a year earlier, unemployment in BiH decreased by 7 665 persons or 2.37%. 

Unemployment decreased by 334 persons (0.13%) in the FBiH, by 274 persons (0.55%) in the RS, and by 73 persons (0.53%) in the BD BiH.  

The structure of job seekers as of 31 October 2025 was as follows:

Unskilled workers: 91 126 or 28.89%, comprising 36 092 (28.36%) men and 55 034 (29.24%) women

Semi-skilled workers/low educational background: 4 129 or 1.31%, comprising 1 926 (1.51%) men and 2 203 (1.17%) women

Skilled workers: 98 855 or 31.33%, comprising 49 752 (39.09%) men and 49 103 (26.09%) women

Highly skilled workers: 594 or 0.19%, comprising 332 (0.35%) men and 161 (0.09%) women

Secondary school qualifications: 90 927 or 28.82%, comprising 30 490 (23.96%) men and 60 437 (32119%) women

Two-year post-secondary education: 4 706 or 1.49%, comprising 1 571 (1.23%) men and 3 135 (1.67%) women

University degree: 25 141 or 7.97%, comprising 7 015 (5.51%) men and 18 126 (9.63%) women

Within the total number of registered unemployed people, 13 014 were newly added to the register in October 2025, of whom 6 953 were women.  The total number of people who were deregistered amounted to 13 740, of whom 7 081 were women.  Of the total number of people who were deregistered, 8 144 or 59.27% were placed in jobs, of whom 4 324 or 53.09% were women.  

In October 2025, employers reported 2 777 new job vacancies to public employment services in BiH, of which 660 were for women. At the same time, the registered number of people whose employment terminated during the reported period amounted to 8 993.  The registered number of women whose employment terminated during the reporting period was 4 802 or 53.40%.

 

According to the BiH Agency for Statistics, the number of people in paid work in BiH in September 2025 amounted to 853 172, of whom 390 404 were women.  Compared to August 2025, the total number of people in work increased by 0.9% and the number of women in work increased by 1.5%. 

 

According to the results of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for the third quarter of 2025, the labour force in BiH (economically active population) comprised 1 441 000 people and the number of inactive people amounted to 1 432 000. 

The labour force comprised 1 280 000 people in work and 162 000 unemployed people. The LFS unemployment rate in the third quarter of 2025 was substantially lower than the administrative one and it stood at 11.2% at the level of BiH.

The number of people in work in the third quarter of 2025 increased by 4.8% compared to the second quarter of 2025, while the number of the unemployed decreased by 12.00%.

The unemployment rate in the third quarter stood at 11.2% and it was lower by 1.9 percentage points compared to the second quarter of 2025 (13.1%).  The LFS employment rate in the third quarter of 2025 stood at 44.5% and it was higher by 2.0 percentage points compared to the second quarter of 2025 (42.5%).

The youth (aged 15-24) unemployment rate in BiH in the third quarter of 2025 was 33.5%, which is a decrease of 0.4 percentage points compared to the second quarter of 2025 (33.9%).