Freedom of Association
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Freedom of Association
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Freedom of Association
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LRI 2024
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Serbia

Freedom of Association Indicator

The Labour Rights Index 2024 (LRI 2024) is a de-jure index covering 145 economies and structured around the working lifespan of a worker. In total, 46 questions or evaluation criteria are scored across 10 indicators. The overall score is calculated by taking the average of each indicator, with 100 being the highest possible score. The Index uses a rating system, ranging from “Total Lack of Decent Work” to “Decent Work”. The Labour Rights Index aims at an active contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals, by providing necessary (complementary) insights into de jure provisions on issues covered in particular by SDG8 (Decent Jobs), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and SDG 16 (Strong Institutions). The Index is based on national labour legislation, applicable on 1 January 2024.

Serbia’s overall score is 93.5 out of 100. The overall score for Serbia is greater than the regional average observed across Eastern Europe (88). Within the Eastern Europe, the highest score is observed for Greece & Hungary (96).

Serbia ratified Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) in 2000 and Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) in 2000.

Labour Rights Index 2024

93.5/100

LRI Country Score

75/100

Freedom of Association Indicator

33.28 %

Trade union density rate (%)

55 %

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)

1.41

SDG indicator 8.8.2

4

ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 Ratings

Question

Answer

Score

Legal Basis

More Info

Does the law allow workers to form and join unions of their own choice?

Yes

1

§206-216 of Serbia's Labour Law, 2005

Does the law allow workers to bargain collectively with employers through their representative unions?

Yes

1

§219 & 240-255 of Serbia's Labour Law, 2005

A

Does the law provide for the right to strike?

No

0

§194-196 of Serbia's Labour Law, 2005 ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 (Serbia profile)

A,C

Does the law prohibit imposing of excessive sanctions against striking workers?

Yes

1

§61 of the Constitution, 2006; §14 & 15 of the Law on Strikes, 1996; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Senegal)

B,D

Textual sources

A : National Law

National Labour Legislation

B : CEACR

CEACR: ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (latest report)

C : ITUC

ITUC: ITUC Global Rights Index

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

LRI Country Score
The Labour Rights Index has 10 indicators and 46 sub-indicators. The LRI Country score averages 10 indicators and ranges between 0 and 100. The lowest and highest scorers are Nigeria (29/100) and Belgium/Greece (96/100). https://labourrightsindex.org/  

Freedom of Association Indicator
The Freedom of Association indicator is composed of 4 sub-indicators. Scoring is done through the binary method (0 or 1). The score ranges between 0-100. 

Trade union density rate (%)
The trade union density rate conveys the number of union members who are employees as a percentage of the total number of employees in the country. For updated statistics on trade union density, please check ILOSTAT. 

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)
The collective bargaining coverage rate conveys the number of employees whose pay and/or conditions of employment are determined by one or more collective agreement(s) as a percentage of the total number of employees in the country. For updated statistics on collective bargaining coverage, please check ILOSTAT. 

SDG indicator 8.8.2
SDG indicator 8.8.2 measures national compliance with fundamental labour rights (freedom of association and collective bargaining or FACB). It ranges from 0 to 10, with 0 being the best possible score (indicating higher levels of compliance with FACB rights) and 10 the worst (indicating lower levels of compliance with FACB rights). It is based on six ILO supervisory body textual sources and national legislation.
For an updated assessment on SDG indicator 8.8.2, please check ILOSTAT. 

ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 Ratings
The ITUC Global Rights Index depicts the world’s worst countries for workers by rating 148 countries on a scale from 1 to 5+ on the degree of respect for workers’ rights. Violations are recorded each year from April to March.  For a detailed description of ratings and methodology, please follow the link. 

Information

Source: §206-216 of Serbia's Labour Law, 2005

Information

Source: §219 & 240-255 of Serbia's Labour Law, 2005

A : National Law

National Labour Legislation

"Art 219: A representative trade union at the employer is considered to be a trade union that fulfills the requirements of Article 218 of this law and in which at least 15% of employees from the total number of employees at the employer are members. A trade union in a branch, group, subgroup or activity in which at least 15% of the employees of that employer are directly members is considered a representative trade union of the employer. "

Information

Source: §194-196 of Serbia's Labour Law, 2005 ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 (Serbia profile)

A : National Law

National Labour Legislation

"Article 194 The general act and employment contract may provide for a procedure for the mutual resolution of disputed issues between the employer and the employee. Disputed issues within the meaning of paragraph 1 of this article shall be resolved by an arbitrator. The parties to the dispute are appointed by an arbitrator agreement from among experts in the field that is the subject of the dispute. The deadline for starting proceedings before the arbitrator is three days from the day the decision is delivered to the employee. The arbitrator is obliged to make a decision within 10 days from the date of submission of the request for amicable settlement of disputed issues. During the duration of the procedure before the arbitrator due to the termination of the employment contract, the employee's employment relationship is suspended. If the arbitrator does not make a decision within the period referred to in paragraph 5 of this article, the decision on the termination of the employment contract becomes enforceable. The decision of the arbitrator is final and binding on the employer and the employee. Article 195 Against the decision that violated the right of the employee or when the employee learned about the violation of the right, the employee, or the representative of the trade union of which the employee is a member if authorized by the employee, can initiate a dispute before the competent court. The deadline for initiating a dispute is 60 days from the day of delivery of the decision, that is, knowledge of the violation of rights."

C : ITUC

ITUC Global Rights Index (country legal profile)

"No strike action may be taken if the parties to a collective agreement fail to reach an agreement. In such a case, the dispute shall be submitted to compulsory arbitration. "

Information

Source: §61 of the Constitution, 2006; §14 & 15 of the Law on Strikes, 1996; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Senegal)

B : CEACR

CEACR: ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations

"Art 15: During a strike organized under the conditions established by this law, the employer may not hire new persons to replace the participants in the strike, unless the safety of persons and property is threatened in the sense of Article 7, paragraph 1 of this law, maintenance of the minimum work process that ensures the safety of property and persons, as well as the performance of international obligations in the sense of Art. 9 and 10 of this law. The employer may not prevent the employee from participating in the strike, nor use coercive measures to end the strike, nor, based on non-participation in the strike, predict better wages or other more favorable working conditions for employees who do not participate in the strike."

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

"The law provided for the reinstatement of workers fired for union activity, and fired workers generally returned to work quickly."