At the „Novosadska toplana“ PUC in Novi Sad, a procedure for peaceful resolution of a collective dispute was conducted on the issue of exercising the right to trade union organizing and activities. The procedure was initiated by the „Nezavisnost“ United Branch Trade Union of the „Novosadska toplana“ PUC.

Dr Jelena Gluščević was appointed the conciliator in charge and at the first hearing she set up a Conciliation Board with participation of parties in dispute and the appointed conciliator. Three hearings were held after which a joint recommendation was agreed on recommending the way to resolve the issue under dispute.

The disputed parties, assisted by the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes mediation, signed a joint recommendation on the way to resolve the collective labor dispute, which was unanimously adopted by the Conciliation Board.

Once again, in line with the recommendation of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, the „Novosadska toplana“ PUC in Novi Sad resorted to the procedure of peaceful resolution of labor dispute to exemplify willingness for social dialogue in order to reach a dispute-resolving compromise.

A three-day annual Regional Conference of Network of Agencies for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes was held in Belgrade from 6 – 8 October 2021.

The Conference was attended by directors of agencies and other bodies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes, as well as arbiters and conciliators from Montenegro, Romania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Albania, Republic of Srpska (B&H), Hungary and Republic of Serbia.

The conference was officially open by the deputy minister for labor, employment, veterans and social affairs, Prof. Dr Sandra Grujičić, who pointed out that peaceful resolution of labor disputes applying the methods of conciliation and arbitrage is a huge civilization step forward and that the culture of dialogue, tolerance, compromise and understanding is a great value in itself in all areas of human labor, and in particular when the relationships among workers, employers and the state are concerned.

The Regional Conference gathered over 30 participants from the Western Balkan countries focusing the issue of promoting the institutions for peaceful resolution of labor disputes using benchmarking and comparison of achieved performance and case management systems.

The Director of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes, Dr Ivica Lazović, talked about the impact of the amendments to the Law on Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes and further needs for improvement, and also presented the benefits of the IT system for case management used only in our country.

The whole event was organized as a part of the Employment and Social Affairs Platform 2 (ESAP 2) that represents a three-year project funded by the European Union funds and implemented by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and Regional Cooperation Council.

Among other things, through the ESAP 2 project, an International Labor Organization team provides the Western Balkan countries support in the promotion and development od the concept of peaceful resolution of labor disputes.

On 7 and 8 October 2021, as a part of the Regional Conference of Network of Agencies for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes two specialized one-day courses were held on “Skills for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes”.

The trainings were run by trainers of the International Training Center in Turin, Sylvain Baffi and Peter Harwood. Sylvain Baffi is an educator at the ILO International Training Center, while Peter Harwood was the chief conciliator of the British Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (acas.ogr.uk). Peter Harwood shared his years of experience with conciliators and arbiters in a discussion on the development of rapport and empathy, identification of obstacles, institutional stumbling blocks and sharing the best practices. A part of the training was dedicated to the work on overcoming prejudices and assumptions, as well as to the role of institutions in the work with parties and conciliators to effectively resolve disputes.

The training was interactive with group exercises and discussions on abundance of open issues and will be continued next years for all conciliators and arbiters of the Network of Agencies for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes.

From 6 to 8 October 2021 the Regional Conference of Network of Agencies for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes will be held in Belgrade, within the ESAP 2 (Employment and Social Affairs Platform) project of the International Labor Organization and European Commission. Countries from the broader region will participate (Bulgaria, Romania, Montenegro, Republic of Srpska (B&H), Republic of North Macedonia, Albania and Hungary).

The Annual Regional Conference of Agencies for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes is the most important event in this field and represents a continuation of cooperation among countries that are signatories of the Memorandum of Understanding on Prevention and Resolution of Labor Disputes. Important issues will be discussed at the regional conference including the system for performance development of conciliators and arbitrators, the use of case management system and promotion of efficacy and prospects for further development.

Two specialone day training courses for conciliators and arbitrators will be held during the Conference on the skills required for labor dispute resolution. The trainings will be run by the International Training Center in Turin, which is an ILO specialized training center.

The importance of this conference lies in the fact that it is an event that gathers experts from the region and provides conditions for more intensive cooperation and direct sharing od relevant experiences, information and examples of good practice.

The XXIII International Seminar of the Society for Labor and Social Security Law was held on Zlatibor from 15 to 18 September 2021. The main topic was “Challenges of Modern Labor Legislation”. The Seminarwas open by Prof. Dr PredragJovanović, the Society President, Jovan Protić, representative of the International Labor Organization and Dr Ivica Lazović, Agency director, while Prof. Dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević as the first line minister visiting the seminar was a special guest at the opening.

Prof. Dr Kisić Tepavčević underlined that contribution of the Society for Labor and Social Security Law was very important for promotion of labor and social security rights, as substantiated by 23 years of tradition. She also expressed her full support to the Society activities. The Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs is prepared for all challenges relating to labor law, while cooperation with pertinent experts is of great importance for overcoming the challenges, highlighted Prof. Dr Kisić Tepavčević, the Minister of Labor, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs. Prof. Dr Sandra Grujičić, assistant minister in the sector for labor and employment also participated in the proceedings of the International Seminar of the Society for Labor and Social Security Law.

Dr Ivica Lazović, the Agency Director,presented his paper on challenges faced by labor legislation in the area of peaceful resolution of labor disputes and accentuated the need to recognize options for peaceful resolution of labor disputes in new regulations that govern various areas relating to work, such as strikes or seasonal work. He also elaborated the possibilities for further promotion of the legal concept of peaceful resolution of labor disputes through amendments in the current legislative solutions in terms of introducing two level procedures, binding nature of the ruling and mediation as a method to resolve labor disputes.

The seminar topics comprised the whole body of labor lawthrough the lens of labor law concepts and practice in resolution of labor disputes (court and out of court methods). Presenters, moderators and other participants included local and international experts (labor law professors from our universities and prestigious universities in the region, eminent judges working in all judicial instances, experts focusing drafting of legal regulations and their implementation, representative trade unions, arbitrators and conciliators of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes, attorneys and others).

A collective labor dispute at the „SvetiLuka“ General Hospital in Smederevo was mediated by the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and resolved by an agreement signed by all parties. The collective dispute was raised on the occasion of application of the Special Collective Agreement. PredragPlavkić was the assigned conciliator in this case.

After five hearings, a Recommendation was signed on the way to resolve the collective labor dispute. The Agreement on resolution of the collective labor dispute (to be integrated into the collective agreement) followed the Recommendation, so that all disputed issues were resolved. The employer at the „SvetiLuka“ General Hospital and participating trade unions („Sloga“ at the „SvetiLuka“ GH, Trade Union of Nurses and Medical Technicians at the„Sveti Luka“ GH, and Trade Union of Employees at Health and Social Service at the „Sveti Luka“ GH inSmederevo) have shown that social dialogue between employees and employer can result in proper solution, since they opted on peaceful resolution of dispute in line with recommendation of the Government of Serbia to resolve disputes peacefully.

At the „Infostan tehnologije“ PUC in Belgrade, in the procedure of peaceful resolution of a labor dispute relating to the right to organize and act through a trade union initiated upon proposal of the “Sloga” Trade Union at the „Infostan tehnologije“ PUC, Slađana Andrić, the assigned conciliator, passed a recommendation on how to resolve the collective labor dispute.

The conciliator set up a Conciliation Panel, according to the law, which is made up of representatives of parties in dispute. The procedure was mediated by the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes. The management and trade union held opposing positions on the issue at hand. After two hearings and summation of proposals on how to overcome the current situation,the parties asked the conciliator to recommend a possible resolution. The conciliator advised to examine and reconsider claims of the trade union and resolve the disputed issue peacefully through continued dialogue.

The procedure before the Agency was conducted over the right to organize and act through a trade union, which is, inter alia, granted by article 206 of the Labor Law. The parties in dispute are given the opportunity to reach a mutually acceptable solution through direct dialogue taking into account common interests.

On Tuesday, 13 June 2021, the Office of International Labor Organization in Budapest organized a Validation Workshop in Belgrade to compare legislation of the Republic of Serbia on elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work in line with provisions of ILO Convention 190. The Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes was involved in this event. Jovan Protić, the ILO national coordinator, Valentina Beghini, ILO senior technical advisor in Geneva, Cristina Mihes, ILO senior specialist for social dialogue in Budapest, and Prof. Dr BojanUrdarević,ILOexternal advisor and conciliator of the Agency talked about Convention 190 and violence and harassment in the world of work.

On 21 June 2019 the ILO adopted The Convention on Elimination of Violence and Harassment in the World of Work (# 190) and accompanying Recommendation (# 206). Adopted conventions are submitted to all ILO members for ratification, and recommendations are submitted for examination and application in the form of a national law or in some other way. Each state has discretionary power of ratification, i.e.to adopt the convention in full, conditionally or partially, refuse to ratify it or simply decide not to ratify it.

Presentations from the Workshop can be seen HERE and HERE.

At the „Kragujevac“ Emergency Medicine Institute peaceful resolution of a collective labor dispute ensued after the right to recognize representativeness of the trade union was questionedby the employer. The case was raised upon advice of the “Sloga” Association of Serbian Trade Unions – Trade Union of Health and Social Services. The assigned conciliator, Dr Aleksandar Antić, passed a recommendation on the way to resolve the collective dispute.

The conciliator set up a Conciliation Panel composed of representatives of parties in dispute,in line with the law. After two hearings mediated by the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes, the parties, management and trade union still failed to agree on the common recommendation to resolve the collective dispute. Upon request of the trade union, the conciliator advised to continue the process of recognition of the trade union representativeness by the employer according to the law and resolve all disputed issues peacefully through social dialogue.

At the „Kragujevac“ Emergency Medicine Institute the trade union and management once again gave an example of good practice on how to resolve labor disputes peacefully. Let us remind you that in late 2020 in this Institute over 170 individual disputes on how remuneration was paid were peacefully resolved in the procedure before the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes.Opting to resolve their disputes peacefully, the staff and management of the„Kragujevac“ Emergency Medicine Institute show their social responsibility in line with the Government recommendation that beneficiaries of public funds should resolve their disputes peacefully in order to reduce budgetary expenses in these procedures.

On 25 June 2021 Introductory Training was held for newly appointed conciliators and arbiters in compliance with the 2021 Program of Professional Development of Conciliators and Arbiters.

The training was held in the webinar format and divided into two segments. Segment 1 covered the conciliation procedures with case studies from the Agency practice run by Prof. Dr Bojan Urdarević, an experienced conciliator working for our Agency. Segment 2 covered the issues of arbitrage with practical examples. It was run by Dejana Spasojević Ivančić with years of experience in arbitration and conciliation cases in our Agency.

Although the interactive webinar was held in order to introduce newly elected conciliators and arbiters into the arbitration and conciliation procedures before the Agency, it will also be useful for other conciliators and arbiters as a forum for sharing relevant experiences and cases they encounter in practice.

You can access the webinar presentations by a click to the following links Mirenja and Arbitraže .

At the „Sremska Mitrovica“ General Hospital in Sremska Mitrovica, parties in dispute, with Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes as the mediator, drafted a joint recommendation on the mode of resolution of the collective labor dispute that was unanimously adopted and signed by the Conciliation Board.

The case was conducted before the Agency in order to exercise the right to establish a trade union representativeness by the employer. The procedure was initiated upon proposal to initiate a procedure for peaceful resolution of a collective dispute by the Trade Union of Nurses and Medical Technicians of Serbia for multiple employers, such as the Healthcare Center and General Hospital in Sremska Mitrovica. The Conciliation Board was set up in compliance with the Law combining representatives of disputed parties and Dejana Spasojević Ivančić in the capacity of the attending conciliator. After two hearings the joint recommendation was drafted on how to overcome and resolve the issue.

At the „Sremska Mitrovica“ General Hospital both the employees and employer entered the peaceful resolution of dispute procedure exemplifying willingness to participate in social dialogue in order to come up with sustainable solutions in line with the law.

At the JKP „Novosadska toplana“ in Novi Sad parties in dispute, with mediation of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes, draw a joint recommendation on the resolution of the collective labor dispute that was eventually unanimously adopted and signed by the Conciliation Board.

The procedure before the Agency was conducted for exercising the right to establish representativeness of the trade union at the Employer’s company. The procedure followed the proposal to initiate a procedure for peaceful resolution of labor dispute between the “Nezavisnost” (“Independence”) Trade Union and JKP „Novosadska toplana“. The Conciliation Board was set up in line with the law, including representatives of the disputed parties and Ružica Erceg as the attending conciliator. After two hearings joint recommendation was written advising on the way to overcome the disputed issue.

The employer and employees of the JKP „Novosadska toplana“ in Novi Sad followed recommendations of the Government of the Republic of Serbia and in this peaceful resolution of dispute gave an example of willingness to establish social dialogue in order to find sustainable solutions in line with regulations in force.

In the process of peaceful resolution of collective labor dispute at the PPT „Petoletka“ Trstenik relating to the collective agreement signing upon advice of the trade union organization, affiliate of the Independent Trade Union of Metal Workers of Serbia, at the PPT „Petoletka“ Trstenik, Mr Draško Veličković, attending conciliator, passed a recommendation on how to resolve the collective labor dispute.

The conciliator set up a conciliation board, in line with the law, composed of representatives of the disputed parties. With the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes as the mediator, the management and trade union leaders failed to reach common recommendation on how to resolve the collective labor dispute peacefully. Therefore, the conciliator passed a recommendation in good faith for continuation of the dialogue in compliance with mutual respect and appreciation of interests of both parties.

The procedure before the Agency was conducted in reference to conclusion of the collective agreement; almost all provisions were agreed upon except for the remuneration per hour and coefficient. Nevertheless, in the procedure both parties have an opportunity to continue the direct dialogue further and reach acceptable solution with appreciation of common interests.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes was visited by a delegation of the International Labor Organization on the occasion of implementation of the project entitled Employment and Social Affairs Platform - ESAP 2. The meeting was attended by Ada Huibregtse, the chief project coordinator, and Jovan Protić, national coordinator of the International Labor Organization for the Republic of Serbia.

The Employment and Social Affairs Platform (ESAP 2) is a regional 3-year project funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented jointly by the Regional Cooperation Council and International Labor Organization (ILO).

ESAP 2 is a continuation of a successfully implemented first part of the project in the region of the Western Balkans (2016 to 2019) and is aimed at upgrading of the results achieved in the area of combating unreported work, preparation, implementation and monitoring of detailed national maps to curb unreported work and implementation of intervention packages; support to social dialogue in order to promote participation of economic and social councils in enactment of economic and social policies, promotion of collective negotiations and support of networking of agencies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes; advancing of knowledge and practices of labor inspections for prevention and curbing unreported work; implementation of strengthened social agenda for the Western Balkans in Cooperation with the European Commission, reinforced EU engagement in supporting the Western Balkans to enable effective implementation of reform at the labor market in the area of social policies and EU enlargement process. To learn more about the project, see: https://www.esap.online/pages/1/we-are-esap-2

Referring to the support to networking of agencies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes, it is agreed to host a regional annual conference of national agencies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes in Belgrade in early October. It is also agreed to examine the possibility of professional development of conciliators and arbiters by the International Labor Organization at its training center in Turin.

At the meeting the Agency Director, Ivica Lazović, informed Mrs Huibregtse about our practical experience, and in particular digitalization of the procedure, where we, being the first in the region to do so, will be the model for other agencies. Cooperation on the project so far was found to be positive and in further implementation a series of activities are agreed to promote alternative forms of resolution of labor disputes.

On 1 June 2021 an on-line meeting of regional network of agencies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes on „Impact of Covid-19 pandemic on peaceful resolution of labor disputes in the Western Balkans“ was held.

The meeting, first in this format, was organized by the International Labor Organization within the project entitled Employment and Social Affairs Platform – ESAP 2 implemented by the International Labor Organization and Regional Cooperation Council.

The meeting was attended by Ada Huibregtse, ILO Chief Technical Advisor, Cristina Mihes, ILO senior specialist for social dialogue and labor law, Bernd Wild, from the EC Directorate General for Employment, Attila Kun, Head, Department for Labor Law and Social Security, Karoli Gaspar University, Budapest, Vesna Simović-Zvicer and Zdenka Burzan from the Montenegrin Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes, Velibor Mikać from the Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes of the Republic of Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Vladimir Boyadijev from the National Institute for Conciliation and Arbitrage (Bulgaria), Lulјeta Crasta from the Ministry of Social Protection and Youth of Albania, as well as representatives of social partners in the region, ILO experts and project experts.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes was represented by the Director, Dr Ivica Lazović whose presentation was entitled „Labor Disputes and Covid-19 pandemic: Challenges and Solutions”. Prof. Dr Senad Jašarević talked about practical experiences of conciliation during the pandemic.

Relevant experiences, information and examples of good practice in the operations of conciliators and arbiters during the pandemic were shared, and further forms of cooperation promotion among the regional network of agencies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes agreed.

On 21 April 2021, after a successful mediation of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes, a Recommendation on Peaceful Resolution of Collective Labor Dispute at „Tamiš Dunav“ d.o.o. Pančevo was signed as the employer’s premises.

The proposal for peaceful resolution of the collective dispute was submitted by the trade union of the „Tamiš Dunav“ d.o.o. Pančevo, where the collective agreement signing was the dispute subject matter.

The attending conciliator set up a Conciliation Board, according to the law. After two hearings of the Conciliation Board the opposing parties reached an agreement, and the dispute was peacefully resolved by signing the Recommendation on Peaceful Resolution of Collective Labor Dispute.

The „Tamiš Dunav“ d.o.o Pančevo employer and corresponding trade union showed openness to social dialogue and provided the grounds for harmonization of a new draft collective agreement to establish better working conditions for all employees.

All arbitrators and conciliators as well as social partners and associates of the Agency interested in immunization against COVID-19 should fill in the form posted at the eGovernment portal at the following link:

https://euprava.gov.rs/usluge/6224

On 22 April 2021 at the premises of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes an annual meeting was held with the national coordinator of the International Labor Organization (ILO), Mr Jovan Protić. On the occasion, further cooperation was agreed, primarily continuation of implementation of the project entitled Employment and Social Affairs Platform – ESAP 2, funded by the European Union and implemented by the International Labor Organization and Regional Cooperation Council.

In a part of the project relating to regional agencies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes the aim is to strengthen regional cooperation and institutional capacities of the national bodies for peaceful resolution of labor disputes. Accordingly, further development and implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation at prevention and resolution of labor disputes and Memorandum of Understanding in the area of harmonization of methods applied in peaceful resolution of labor disputes will be focused.

At the meeting, cooperation of ILO and the Agency has been discussed and found to be very successful. Further directions of joint work on promotion of alternative forms of resolution of labor disputes in coordination with all social partners, primarily the trade unions and employers have been determined.

At the 101st regular meeting of the Social and Economic Council of the Republic of Serbia held on Monday, 29 March 2021 in Belgrade at 10 a.m., the Information on the Operations of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes in 2019 and 2020 was discussed.

The meting was chaired by Prof. Dr Zoran Stojilјković, and the information on the operations of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes in 2019 and 2020 relating to the registered data and other issues relevant for peaceful resolution of labor disputes was presented by Dr Ivica Lazović.

The Information on the Operations of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes in 2019 and 2020 was provides a detailed insight into pertinent activities together with statistical data on the cases resolved before the Agency.

The complete Information on the Operations of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes in 2019 and 2020 is available at the following link: Informacija o radu.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes held the First Interactive Training for arbitrators and conciliators and marked its 15th anniversary.

The training was officially open by the Minister for Labor, Veteran’s and Social Affairs, Prof. Dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević, and representatives of social partners, president of the Association of Independent Trade Unions, Ljubisav Orbović, president of UGS „Nezavisnost“ Prof. Dr Zoran Stojilјković and President of Employer’s Union, Miloš Nenezić. Representatives of social partners talked about their experience in cooperation with the Agency that progressed from initial distrust to close cooperation.

The Minister for Labor, Veteran’s and Social affairs, Prof. Dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević, pointed out that the Ministry would keep on providing full support to further development and operations of the Agency in terms of regulations improvement and promotion of good practices, as well as raising awareness among both employers and employees on the protection provided in our country. For 15 years of its operation almost 20, 000 disputes have been brought before the Agency, out of which about 19,000 individual ones, meaning that the population at large have become aware of the importance of the Agency and trust it, emphasized Prof. Dr Kisić Tepavčević.

Prof. Dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević thanked both arbitrators and conciliators for their dedication and pointed out their most important role in the development of institutionalized peaceful settlement of labor disputes, together with representatives of trade unions and employers, and that they represented the image of the Agency, since their knowledge, expertise and commitment in resolution of cases had contributed to building of trust in the Agency and its operations.

On behalf of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes Ivica Lazović thanked the Ministry for their support and stated that in the oncoming period the Agency would prioritize better cooperation with courts and social partners.

In the working part of the meeting Constitutional Court judge, Lidija Đukić, presented the latest case law relating to resolution of labor disputes. President of the Association for Labor Law and Social Insurance, Prof. Dr Predrag Jovanović, talked about remote meetings under the conditions of pandemic and challenges that these types of operation carried in relation to the labor law.

On 15 March 2021 the Minister of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs, Prof. dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević visited the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes and attended the presentation of results of five years of operations of the SOS mobbing hotline project.

Results of five years of operations of the SOS mobbing hotline were presented by Dr Ivica Lazović, deputy Director of The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes.

The SOS mobbing hotline is a joint project of the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs and the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes. In five years of operation of the 080-300-601 hotline 5,077 calls were registered.

„This is a fairly large number of citizens to whom legal aid was provided“, said Mr Ivica Lazović, Deputy Director of the Agency, adding that out of the total number of calls in 643 cases legal aid was requested, and the Agency participated in about 550 proceedings.

„Nobody should suffer any form of harassment, including mobbing in working environment, and the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes is there to help all to resolve problems relating to any form of harassment,” said Prof. Dr Kisić Tepavčević.

Prof. Dr Kisić Tepavčević also said that there are two key regulations for protection of mobbing at workplace - Law on Prevention of Harassment at Workplace, whereby everybody who believe that they suffer harassment may raise a procedure before the employer, without any third-party mediation, and if this fails, they can appeal for court protection; and there is the Law on Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes enabling mediation of a third party, i.e. the Agency.

The Minister, Prof. Dr Kisić Tepavčević, emphasized that the proceeding before the agency are free of chare, and that the aim of the process is to reach a solution peacefully with agreement of all parties involved.

„We appeal to all of our citizens who believe that they are exposed to any form of harassment at their workplace, to ask for legal aid using the institutional mechanism that proved to be the best and most effective“, said Kisić Tepavčević.

Kisić Tepavčević reminded us that the SOS mobbing hotline was open as a result of cooperation of the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs and Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes, providing the way for all citizens to obtain an appropriate legal advice and guidance on how to reach an appropriate solution peacefully.

Serbia has put in place excellent mechanisms for protection of employees from harassment at work, asserted jointly Prof. Dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević, Minister of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs and Dr Ivica Lazović, Deputy Director of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes at the presentation of five years of the SOS mobbing hotline project.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes mediated in signing of the Recommendation on peaceful settlement of collective labour dispute at „Dijamant“ A.D. Zrenjanin that was signed on 26 February 2021.

The Recommendation on peaceful settlement of collective labour disputes at „Dijamant“ A.D. Zrenjanin was submitted by the employer, and the trade union decided to agree to conduct the procedure peacefully before the Agency. Collective agreement with the employer was the subject matter of the dispute.

Jasmina Čuturilo was assigned the attending conciliator. The conciliator, in compliance with the law, set up the Conciliatory Board. After four meetings of the Conciliatory Board the parties reached an agreement and the dispute was resolved peacefully by signing of the Recommendation on peaceful settlement of the collective labour dispute. Thus, people at „Dijamant“ A.D. Zrenjanin have shown once again how to conduct a social dialogue between employees and employers, deciding to resort to peaceful settlement of the collective labour dispute in line with the recommendation of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, to resolve labour disputes peacefully.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes will provide operational support to the multidisciplinary working group for drafting the Law on Forced Disappearances. This piece of legislation will regulate the legislative aspects of the missing persons issues in a systematic, comprehensive and multidisciplinary manner. This is yet another law from the set of regulations within the purview of the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs supported by the Agency that provides its capacities, on the basis of practice and experience.

The first meeting of the working group for drafting the Law on Forced Disappearances was held on 23 February 2021 at the „Srbija“ Palace and was opened by the Minister of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs, Prof. Dr Darija Kisić Tepavčević with numerous experts and representatives of governmental bodies and civil sector in attendance.

At the 14th regular meeting of the standing task force for collective negotiations and peaceful settlement of labour disputes of the Social and Economic Council of the Republic of Serbia held on Monday, 22 February 2021 the information on the activities of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes in 2019 and 2020 was discussed. The standing task force has adopted a position proposing the Social and Economic Council to examine and adopt the information commending the efforts of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes at the time of Covid-19 pandemic to implement activities established under the law in all procedures of peaceful settlement of labour disputes.

The meeting was chaired by Dragica Mišlјenović from the „Nezavisnost“ Trade Union, and attended by Dušan Petrović, secretary of the Social and Economic Council of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Marković from the Association of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia (SSSS), Jelena Jevtović from the Serbian Association of Employers (UPS) and Dragana Kralј from the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs. Mr Ivica Lazović, Deputy Director of the Agency presented the information on activities of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes relating to registries of data and other issues relevant for procedures of peaceful settlement of labour disputes in 2019 and 2020.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes has adopted the 2021 Professional Development Program for arbitrators and conciliators.

The professional development program aims at continuous improvement of skills and knowledge with conformance of practices of arbitrators and conciliators in the area of peaceful settlement of labour disputes, which is an important prerequisite for further development of the concept of peaceful settlement of labour disputes in practice, and accordingly effective protection in the area of labour law in the Republic of Serbia.

The Program envisages tree training courses for arbitrators and conciliators as well as special individual trainings. In addition to these, the Agency shall make efforts to organize more courses in 2021 with expert support of the International Labour Organization (ILO).

You can download the 2021 Professional Development Program for arbitrators and conciliators by a click to this LINK.