Bosnia and Herzegovina, or BiH, is a country in South East Europe. It is comprised of two entities, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) and Republika Srpska (RS), as well as the self-governed condominium of the Brčko District. The gender wage gap in Bosnia and Herzegovina is significantly worse than it is in the European Union (EU). According to a report by the AIRE center and United Nations Development Program (UNDP), in BiH, women’s Gross National Income (GNI) per capita is about 19,457 in Bosnian currency (BAM) or $10,709, to men’s 36,189 BAM or $19,917, meaning women earn 53.7% of men’s income. In the EU, the average working woman earns 87 cents for every euro that the average working man earns. BiH also sees less representation of women in politics and the labor market more generally.

Historical Factors

Many historians point to the Bosnian War of 1992-1995, part of the wider breakup of Yugoslavia in that period, as a catalyst for the gender wage gap in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The hyper-masculine wartime rhetoric is seen to have entrenched a number of damaging gender beliefs and stereotypes. 

The Impact of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic had a substantially worse effect on women’s pay than it did on men’s pay, as determined in a number of different studies. The U.N. BiH Common Country Analysis for 2022 revealed that the increase in unpaid domestic and care work as a result of the pandemic disproportionately affected women, with 50% reporting an increase in domestic work (as opposed to 35% of men) and 28% reporting an increase in childcare work (as opposed to 23% of men). In addition, the UNDP Report Economic Impact Assessment of COVID-19 in BiH found that the pandemic particularly affected female-dominated sectors such as wholesale and retail trade, education and human health and social work.

‘Equal Pay for Equal Work’ Versus ‘Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value’

‘Equal pay for equal work’, according to Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), prohibits men from earning more than women in the same jobs. Although this is positive, it does not address the reality that women are not able to access high-paying jobs as easily as men. For example, discrepancies in male versus female education, as well as gender stereotyping, lead to occupational and sectoral segregation, with women in BiH generally leaning toward the fields of health and social care, education and social sciences and men leaning more toward the fields of information and communication technologies, engineering, production and construction. 

‘Equal pay for work of equal value’ is a concept that seeks to redress some of these imbalances, and 40% of all countries have put legislation in place to this effect. The principle of ‘equal pay for work of equal value’ is reflected in Article 77 of the Labour Law of FBiH, with ‘work of equal value’ defined as work that ‘requires the same level of professional qualifications, same capacity for work, responsibility, physical and intellectual work, skills, working conditions and work outputs.’ As stated by the UNDP, however, this law ‘lacks a clear definition of equal pay, which should encompass not only wages but also all other forms of cash and nonmonetary compensation, and does not prescribe fines for the violation of this provision.’ No such law is present in the Labour Law of RS. 

The Persisting Challenge

Unfortunately, there remain several reasons why even the presence of ‘equal pay for work of equal value’ does not translate to closing the gender wage gap in Bosnia and Herzegovina. For example, culturally assigned gender roles, such as the expectation for women to undertake childcare responsibilities, lead to lower participation in the labor market among women in comparison to men. Also, gender-based discrimination, although legislated against in both FBiH and RS, is difficult to properly regulate.

Looking Forward

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) has implemented various legislative measures to address the gender wage gap. These measures are evident in laws such as the Law on Work in BiH Institutions, the Labour Law of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) and the Labour Law of Republika Srpska (RS). These laws provide protective provisions for pregnant women and mothers, including provisions related to maternity leave and breaks for breastfeeding during working hours.

Efforts are also being made towards achieving pay transparency in the country, aligning with broader EU initiatives. However, the formal integration of pay transparency measures into the legislative framework is still pending.

Several charitable organizations and nongovernmental groups in BiH are actively working to shift the cultural discourse on gender issues. For instance, the Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation offers legal and psychological support to survivors of sexual assault and gender-based violence (GBV), while also educating men about women’s rights. Women for Women International, an organization established during the war to aid survivors of torture and rape, continues to advocate for women’s rights. Its affiliated organization, the Žene za Žene International Association of Sarajevo (ŽzŽ), empowers women to pursue roles in politics and other leadership positions.

These efforts reflect ongoing work in BiH to promote gender equality and address issues related to women’s rights and gender-based discrimination.

– Amelia Stout
Photo: Flickr