Pasalic: Employee complaints mostly about taxes, vacations, and severance pay

The Ombudsman of the Republic of Serbia, Zoran Pasalic, tells Kosovo Online that complaints submitted by citizens regarding violations of their labor rights mostly come from individuals who own small or medium-sized businesses and relate to rights concerning taxes, contributions, and other payments.

"When it comes to employees in the private sector or even those working in public service, the complaints are mostly about rights related to annual leave, specifically the use and duration of annual leave, or, when an employment relationship ends, rights stemming from the termination of employment, such as severance pay, pensions, and similar rights," Pasalic said.

When cases of labor rights violations end up in court, according to him, several steps precede that process.

"First, citizens come to us, then we contact the labor inspection or the competent ministry, and once the labor inspection does its job, we carry out our procedure. Only if we are unable to ensure their rights are respected do we proceed to court. In some cases, these processes are resolved very quickly; in others, they take time," the Ombudsman said.

From a financial and safety perspective, the most vulnerable jobs in Serbia, he emphasized, are generally those requiring lower qualifications, where high school education is the highest level attained.

"These are large systems, mostly in the retail sector, where a large number of employees work. Often, due to what employers typically describe as 'business needs,' shifts are changed, working hours are extended, or employees are transferred from one location to another 'as needed' by the employer," he explained.

Pasalic stated that protests and strikes are only one way for workers to fight for their rights, but that what truly yields results is systemic change, modifying certain laws or introducing new articles into existing laws that regulate employee rights, from the Constitution to specific laws and down to internal company regulations that govern workers' status.

On the occasion of International Workers' Day, he said that maximum support should be given to citizens starting their own businesses.

"As long as I do this job, I will always insist that those citizens of the Republic of Serbia who genuinely strive to start their own businesses with their own resources, no matter how small those resources may be, and who persist in building something for themselves and their descendants, should always be given maximum support," Pasalic stated.