On October 12 the Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes was a host to the students of the Faculty of Law University of Belgrade. The visit was organized in cooperation of the Agency and Students Organizations for International Cooperation (SAMS) within of the project entitled ‘Meet legal institutions in the right/legal way’.

In the framework of the signed Cooperation Agreement with the Faculty of Law University of Belgrade the Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes has been running different forms of cooperation and a Cooperation Agreement has also been signed and with the Faculty of Law University of Niš.

The project entitled ‘Meet legal institutions in the right/legal way’ is aimed at enabling students to learn more about professions and lines of work that can be pursued after completion of undergraduate studies and empowering young students for the labor market.

A visit to the Agency gave the students an opportunity to learn about the scope of work and competencies of the Agency, professional challenges faced by the staff as well as benefits associated with amicable resolution of disputes.

The Agency Director, Dr Ivica Lazović, talked to the students about the Agency position in the public administration system, its establishment and competencies, targeted actions and the indicators of accomplishments so far. On the occasion he highlighted all specificities associated with the Agency operations. Also, Dr Lazović introduced the students to advantages of raising and running procedures before the Agency in comparison with court proceedings.

In a presentation by Ms Dragana Andonovska, manager of the Agency Legal Affairs Unit, the students had the opportunity to see some examples from practice i.e. how some individual as well as collective labor disputes were resolved.

In continuation of the visit, the guests participated in a Q&A session.

On September 29, at the invitation of the Social and Economic Council of Stara Pazova Municipality, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes presented its operations at the Regional Business Fair, which took place on September 29-30 in Nova Pazova, organized by the municipality of Stara Pazova and the Serbian Chamber of Commerce of the Regional Chamber of Commerce of the Srem administrative district.

The participants, among whom were representatives of trade unions, local governments and companies operating on the territory of these municipalities, had the opportunity to get a deeper insight into the work of the Agency so far, as well as into the course of proceedings before the Agency.

The presentation was opened by the Agency Director, Dr Ivica Lazović, who presented the competences of the Agency to the audience, the deadlines in which the proceedings before the Agency are completed, as well as the statistics of proceedings initiated in the previous period. Dr. Lazović paid special attention to the advantages of the proceedings before the Agency versus court proceedings for all parties in the dispute. Dragana Andonovska, the head of the Agency's legal and technical affairs group, introduced the participants to examples from practice and the ways in which these disputes were resolved.

In continuation of the meeting, the participants had the opportunity to ask questions and participate in the discussion.

Mediated by the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes, a joint recommendation was signed on how to resolve a collective labor dispute in the "Dijamant" d.o.o. company in Zrenjanin.

The procedure before the Agency was initiated by the Trade Union Organization of the "Dijamant" A.D. regarding the implementation of the collective agreement. The employer, "Dijamant" d.o.o. Zrenjanin, agreed that the procedure should be resolved peacefully before the Agency. Živko Kulić was appointed as the acting mediator. A conciliation committee was set up in accordance with the law and included representatives of the parties to the dispute as well as an acting conciliator. After three sessions, a joint recommendation was adopted recommending the way to resolve the disputed issue.

The Association for Labor Law and Social Insurance held the XXIV expert-scientific conference at the mountain Zlatibor from September 14 to 17, 2022. "Labor Law at the Crossroads" was the underlying topic of the conference. Prof. Dr. Predrag Jovanović, President of the Association and Dr. Ivica Lazović, Director of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes opened the conference. In his introductory speech, Prof. Jovanović talked about the importance of the Association and its contribution in three areas, in the field of science, publishing, and thirdly through the promotion of networking among specialists in the field of labor law.

In the working part of the conference, Mr. Lazović presented a report on the peaceful settlement of labor disputes in which he introduced the audience to the current practice of peaceful settlement of labor disputes and current indicators for improving the system for the peaceful settlement of labor disputes in the new regulations governing various areas related to labor.

Through the thematic areas, the conference covered the entire subject matter of the labor law and social law, where numerous topics presented can be examined in more detail at the link https://radno-pravo.org/. Speakers, chairpersons, audience, and participants were distinguished experts from the country and abroad, and a large number of participants were also arbitrators and conciliators of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Resolution of Labor Disputes.

At the 113th regular session of the Social and Economic Council of the Republic of Serbia, which was held in Belgrade on Tuesday, September 13, 2022 at 09:00 am, the Information on the Work of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes for 2021 was discussed.

The session was chaired by prof. Darija Kisić, Minister of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, and Ivica Lazović, Director of the Agency, presented the information on the work of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes regarding the records which are being kept, as well as on other matters of importance for the procedures for peaceful settlement of labour disputes for 2021.

The Information on the Work of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes for 2021 provides a detailed overview of activities within its scope which were implemented, as well as the statistical data on the procedures conducted before the Agency in 2021.

You can find the complete Information on the Work of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes for 2021 at the following link: Information on Work

On 12 July 2022, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes signed an Agreement on peaceful settlement of a collective labor dispute at the Municipality of Lucani, after which the Collective Agreement for employees in the bodies of the Municipality of Lucani was concluded.

The procedure before the Agency was initiated by the employer, the Municipality of Lučani, and the Basic Trade Union Organization of the Municipality of Lučani, the subject of the dispute being the conclusion of a collective agreement with the employer. Milica Radivojević, a lawyer from Ivanjica and a conciliator and arbitrator of the Agency since its inception, served as the acting conciliator.

At the first hearing, the Conciliation Committee was formed, in accordance with the Law. After six sessions, a Recommendation and Agreement on the manner in which to resolve the collective labor dispute was adopted, but a consensus was reached on all the points and contents of the new collective agreement, so that the agreed text was signed by Milivoj Dolović, Mayor of Lučani, and Dragan Jovičić, president of the basic organizations of the trade union of the administrative bodies of Lucani.

The representatives of the local self-government – the Municipality of Lučani and the basic organization of trade unions of administrative bodies – have illustrated how to conduct social dialogue between employees and employers in the proper manner, deciding on the procedure for the peaceful settlement of collective labor disputes, and in accordance with the recommendation of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, i.e., resolving these disputes by institutional mechanisms.

At the final conference entitled "Sharing examples of good practice on methods of peaceful settlement of labor disputes", which was held on 8 July 2022 in Belgrade, in the Palace of Serbia, the results of the project "Joint ventures of social partners to increase visibility of the concept of peaceful resolution of labor disputes" were presented. The project was implemented by the Initiative for Development and Cooperation Association of Citizens in partnership with the Nezavisnost United Branch Trade Union (Independence UBTU), the Union of Employers of Serbia and the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia, with the support of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes, and with the financial support of the International Olof Palme Center.

The conference was opened by Mirko Janić, State Secretary at the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs. The Agency Director, Dr Ivica Lazović, presented the results of the previous work to the audience, with reference to the increasing recognition of the Agency among employees, trade unions and employers in cases of labor dispute. Representatives of the Initiative for Development and Cooperation, International Olof Palme Center, Independence UBTU, Union of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia and Union of Employers of Serbia also spoke at the conference.

Owing to the support of the SOLIDAR network within the project Achieving Social Europe for All, which is financed by the European Commission, the participants had the opportunity to learn more about comparative practices through examples of good practice from Italy, Spain and Albania in order to see their application in a social and legislative framework of the Republic of Serbia, all with the aim of strengthening social dialogue and protecting the social and economic rights of citizens.

Republic Agency for the Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes at the invitation of the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of the City of Subotica and the SEC of Subotica held a round table on July 4 in Subotica on the topic "Peaceful settlement of labor disputes through the Republic Agency for the Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes".

The meeting was attended by trade union representatives of leading companies from the real sector that operate on the territory of the City of Subotica and employees in the public sector, while the local government was represented by the member of the City Council in charge of the economy, Srđan Samardžić.

The round table was opened by Ištvan Huđi, the president of the CAT of the City of Subotica and the chairman of the SEC of Subotica. The Director of the Agency, Dr. Ivica Lazović, presented the work of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and pointed out the advantages of proceeding a dispute before the Agency compared to a court case. Dragana Andonovska, a senior adviser at the Agency, introduced those present with examples from the practice of peaceful settlement of labor disputes. Also, the participants had the opportunity to watch the "Course on Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes".

Afterwards, the attendees could present their experiences, ask questions and participate in the discussion.

On July 1, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes adopted the Action Plan for the introduction of Quality Management through the Common Assessment Framework (CAF).

The action plan is the result of a six-month process of CAF training, which was carried out by consultants of the EU project entitled "Support to Public Administration Reforms within the Sectoral Reform Agreement for Public Administration Reform Sector". This plan defines the activities that the Agency will implement in the coming period with the aim of increasing the quality of providing services to end users.

The introduction of quality management is based on the "Agreement on the implementation of the CAF quality management model" signed on 28 January 2022 by Marija Obradović, Minister of State Administration and Local Self-Government and Dr Ivica Lazović, Agency Director.

With the implementation of the CAF quality management model, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes ranks among the leaders in the Republic of Serbia among the institutions that have opted for the introduction of this model in public administration applied in more than 50 countries, including all EU member states.

You can find more about CAF at the following link https://caf.mduls.gov.rs/

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes presented its work at the invitation of the Trade Union of Nurses and Technicians of Serbia (SMSTS) at a meeting organized by this union in Kladovo from 6-8 June. On behalf of the Agency, the Agency Director, Dr. Ivica Lazović presented the Agency. He was accompanied with Prof. Dr. Bojan Urdarević and Danijela Koštan Kovačević, the Agency arbitrators and conciliators, who took part, as well.

At the gathering, trade union representatives of nurses and technicians were able to learn firsthand about the work of the Agency so far and the benefits provided by the peaceful settlement of labor disputes.

In addition to representatives of the Agency, Radica Ilić, president of the trade union, and Slađana Đukić, assistant to the Minister of Health from the Health Insurance Sector, also spoke at the meeting.

Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes developed an Action Plan for the introduction of Quality Management through the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) model.

The action plan defines the activities that should be improved and the steps that should be taken in order to improve the activities, all with the aim of raising the level of quality of the services provided, which leads to an increase in the satisfaction of end users.

The introduction of quality management is based on the "Agreement on the implementation of the CAF quality management model" signed on 28 January 2022 by Marija Obradović, Minister of State Administration and Local Self-Government and Dr Ivica Lazović, Agency Director. On the basis of this agreement, in the process of implementing the CAF quality management model, the Agency will be provided with professional and technical support by the MDULS Support The team and consultants of the EU project entitled "Support to Public Administration Reforms within the Sectoral Reform Agreement for Public Administration Reform Sector".

The main goal for the introduction of quality management is to strive for continuous increase of efficiency, effectiveness and economy of work processes, constant monitoring, evaluation and improvement of service quality, management and dynamics of the Agency operations. With the implementation of the CAF quality management model, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes ranks among the leaders in the Republic of Serbia among the institutions that have opted for the introduction of this model in public administration applied in more than 50 countries, including all EU member states.

As a part of the project entitled “Joint efforts of social partners to increase the visibility of the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes”, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes held a workshop in Novi Pazar on May 31. This is the fourth workshop this year, which is being realized through a project funded by the "Olof Palme" International Center and implemented by the Development and Cooperation Initiative (IRS) in partnership with the “Nezavisnost” ABTU, Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia and the Union of Employers of Serbia, with the support of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

The participants of the workshop were welcomed by Fevzija Murić, a member of the city council. As in previous workshops, IRS representative Milena Šošić, Agency director Ivica Lazović and social partners were presented the project to the participants. The present audience had the opportunity to get insight into the Course on Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and to get acquainted with the benefits of using this concept and the practice of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

The simulation of the procedure of peaceful settlement of labor dispute to the attending union representatives and employers was presented by the Agency conciliators and arbitrators, Prof. Dr. Živko Kulić and Danijela Koštan Kovačević. The local conciliators and arbitrators of the Agency, Denis Murić and Emil Turković, also participated in the workshop.

On May 30, the International Labor Organization held online training for conciliators and arbitrators from the region. The training was carried out within the framework of the Employment and Social Affairs Platform 2 (ESAP 2) project, on the topic "Improving the effectiveness of mediation in resolving labor disputes".

The training was attended by conciliators and arbitrators from Serbia, as well as representatives of agencies for the peaceful resolution of labor disputes from the Republic of Srpska (BiH) and Montenegro.

Тhe training and workshop was led by Malcolm Curie, an experienced ILO mediator and trainer. Conciliators and arbitrators had the opportunity to improve their skills in resolving individual and collective labor disputes through interactive workshops and exercises, as well as to exchange practical experiences with colleagues from different agencies.

The Employment and Social Affairs Platform (ESAP) 2 is a project funded by the European Union and implemented by the International Labor Organization. It aims to improve the institutional effectiveness of the labor dispute resolution mechanism. Also, the goal is to exchange experiences and learn from colleagues from different agencies for peaceful settlement of labor disputes in the Western Balkans.

On 27 May, the Agency held the third in a series of workshops in Vranje . The workshop is a part of the project entitled “Joint efforts of social partners to increase the visibility of the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes”, implemented by the Development and Cooperation Initiative (IRS) in partnership with the “Nezavisnost” ABTU, Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia and the Union of Employers of Serbia, with the support of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

In the premises of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions in Vranje, Dr. Ivica Lazović, Director of the Agency, was presented the results of Agency operations to the participants. The present audience had the opportunity to get insight into the Course on Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and to get acquainted with the benefits of using this concept and the practice of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes. The simulation of the procedure of peaceful settlement of labor dispute to the attending union representatives and employers was presented by the Agency conciliators and arbitrators.

The workshop was attended by representatives of social partners "Nezavisnost" Association of Branch Trade Unions (ABTU), Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia, Union of Employers of Serbia and Initiative for Development and Cooperation, as well as a representative of “Olof Palme” International Center.

As a part of the project entitled “Joint efforts of social partners to increase the visibility of the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes”, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes held a workshop in Zrenjanin on May 23. This is the second workshop this year, which is being realized through a project funded by the "Olof Palme" International Center and implemented by the Development and Cooperation Initiative (IRS) in partnership with the “Nezavisnost” ABTU, Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia and the Union of Employers of Serbia, with the support of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

The presentation of the work of the Agency and the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes was held by the Agency Director, Dr. Ivica Lazović, and the simulation of the procedure to the attending union representatives and employers was presented by the Agency conciliators and arbitrators. The present audience had the opportunity to get insight into the Course on Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and to get acquainted with the benefits of using this concept and the practice of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

The workshop was attended by representatives of social partners "Nezavisnost" Association of Branch Trade Unions (ABTU), Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia, Union of Employers of Serbia and Initiative for Development and Cooperation.

The Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes presented its work at gatherings held in Ivanjica on May 14, organized by the "Nezavisnost", Serbian Branch Trade Union of Teachers, in Veliko Gradiste from May 11 to 13, organized by the Serbian Trade Union of Construction Workers and Workers in Construction Materials Industry (SSSS) and at VII convention of the Association of Free and Independent Trade Unions (ASNS) on May 21. On that occasion, those interested were able to get acquainted with the work of the Agency so far and the benefits provided by peaceful resolution of labor disputes.

Dejana Spasojević Ivančić, a longtime mediator and arbitrator of the Agency talked at the international meeting held in Večliko Gradište (Silver Lake) which focused the aspects of the labor law and social dialogue in the Western Balkans and the EU. Leticia Baldan, the international secretary of the Belgian Construction and Energy Trade Union, Gijs Lokhorst, a Dutch negotiator for collective agreements in the area of construction works, and Dušan Petrović, secretary of the Social and Economic Council of the Republic of Serbia also spoke at the seminar, together with a number of other presenters.

At the seminar of the "Independence" Branch Trade Union of Teachers of Serbia entitled "Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes", which was held in Ivanjica, Dragana Andonovska, senior advisor at the Agency, introduced the participants to the work of the Agency, with special reference to mobbing and harassment at work. Milica Radivojević, Nataša Arsić Jelić and Danijela Kostan Kovačević, conciliators and arbitrators of the Agency, spoke about the advantages of resolving labor disputes before the Agency against proceedings before the court. In continuation of the gathering, the participants had the opportunity to get acquainted with the whole procedure of peaceful settlement of labor disputes before the Agency through an interactive simulation and workshop.

At VII convention of the Association of Free and Independent Trade Unions (ASNS) director of Agency Ivica Lazović participated as a guest and announced greater cooperation and at least one training for the members of this union on the benefits that peaceful resolution of labor disputes provides.

Within the project entitled Employment and Social Affairs Platform 2 (ESAP 2) implemented by the International Labor Organization, from 10 to 13 May on Zlatibor, training for mediators and arbitrators is held on "Improving the effectiveness of mediation in resolving labor disputes."

In addition to mediators and arbitrators from Serbia, the training was attended by representatives of agencies for the peaceful settlement of labor disputes from the Republic of Srpska (B&H) and Montenegro, as well as representatives of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The training was opened by Ada Huibregtse, ILO Chief Technical Adviser, while the expert part of the training and workshop was led by Malcolm Curie, an experienced ILO mediator and trainer. Conciliators and arbitrators had the opportunity to improve their skills in resolving individual and collective labor disputes through interactive workshops and exercises, as well as to exchange practical experiences with colleagues from different agencies.

Within the project, it is planned to hold another online training by the end of the year, where all conciliators and arbitrators will be welcome.

The Employment and Social Affairs Platform (ESAP) 2 is a project funded by the European Union and implemented by the International Labor Organization. It aims to improve the institutional effectiveness of the labor dispute resolution mechanism. Also, the goal is to exchange experiences and learn from colleagues from different agencies for peaceful settlement of labor disputes in the Western Balkans.

In order to inform the public about the role of the Agency, its competencies and the effects it achieves with its work, as well as professional and free services it offers to citizens and in an effort to increase visibility of this legal concept, we have intensified our presence on social networks. In order to bring its services closer to as many citizens as possible, the Agency has prepared promotional announcements and is conducting a targeted internet campaign with press releases about the Agency's various competencies.

As a part of the internet campaign, a promotional video of the Agency was produced, which you can watch at this link.

Through the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes, the collective labor dispute in the “Elmont” d.o.o. company was resolved by an agreement. Nis. The dispute was initiated by the “Elmont” d.o.o. Niš trade union organization on the issue of exercising the right to determine the representativeness of the union with the employer.

Prof. Dr. Goran Obradović was the appointed mediator and he set up the Conciliation Committee at the first hearing to include representatives of the parties to the dispute and the acting conciliator. Representatives of the employer “Elmont” d.o.o. Niš and the trade union organization “Elmont” d.o.o. Niš signed a joint agreement on the peaceful settlement of labor disputes, by which they agreed on all disputed issues.

In this way, in “Elmont” d.o.o. Niš representatives of employers and trade unions gave another example of how to successfully conduct social dialogue, deciding on a procedure for peaceful settlement of this collective labor dispute.

On 15 April, the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes held the first in a series of workshops in Pančevo dedicated to increasing the visibility and accessibility of the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes.

The presentation of the work of the Agency and the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes was held by the Agency Director, Dr. Ivica Lazović, and the simulation of the procedure to the attending union representatives and employers was presented by the Agency conciliators and arbitrators, Prof. Dr. Živko Kulić and Danijela Koštan Kovačević. The workshop was attended by representatives of social partners, Stefan Todić from the "Nezavisnost" Association of Branch Trade Unions (ABTU), Aleksandar Markovic from the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia, Jelena Jevtović on behalf of the Union of Employers of Serbia and Milena Šošić as a representative of the Initiative for Development and Cooperation.

The present audience had the opportunity to be the first to get insight into the Course on Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and to get acquainted with the benefits of using this concept and the practice of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

The workshop is a part of the project entitled “Joint efforts of social partners to increase the visibility of the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes”, funded by the “Olof Palme” International Center and implemented by the Development and Cooperation Initiative (IRS) in partnership with the “Nezavisnost” ABTU, Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia and the Union of Employers of Serbia, with the support of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

On the occasion of marking the 20th anniversary of the Union of Nurses and Technicians of Serbia (SMSTS), on March 27, 2022 in Belgrade, the present members and management of this union were addressed by the director of the Republic Agency for Peaceful Dispute Resolution Dr. Ivica Lazović and the conciliator of the Agency and labor law professor Dr. Bojan Urdarević.

You can watch their speeches at the following link.

The first interactive training for conciliators and arbitrators in 2022 was held on March 22. At the opening of the training, a plaque was awarded for the contribution to the development of the legal concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes to the line minister, Prof. Dr. Darija Kisić.

Prof. Dr. Kisić congratulated the conciliators and arbitrators on their success in their work so far, stating that everyone benefited from their work, from employees and employers to the entire society and the state. The Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veterans' and Social Affairs supported the idea of expanding the network of conciliators and arbitrators throughout the Republic of Serbia and expressed satisfaction that we now have a total of 92 conciliators and arbitrators, many of whom were elected to cities where they had never been present before.

The Agency Director, Dr. Ivica Lazović, thanked Minister Kisić and the Ministry for their support to the Agency and their contribution to promoting the peaceful settlement of labor disputes. He added that the Ministry has included the Agency in the development of a set of new regulations that are being drafted, which further promotes this concept.

In the continuation of the training conciliators and arbitrators, the techniques and tactics of negotiation were presented by prof. Dr. Senad Jašarević from the Faculty of Law in Novi Sad. Then, the national coordinator of the International Labor Organization, Mr. Jovan Protić, informed the audience about the activities of this organization. After the first session, the panel discussion on judicial practice in the field of labor disputes was led by judges Dr. Bojan Božović and Vesna Dušić from Novi Sad, as well as Mila Lazić from Kragujevac. Prof. Dr. Vera Despotović, educator and mediator herself, spoke about mediation skills.

Students of the 11th generation of the High Security and Defense Studies (HSDS) of the "Vojvoda Radomir Putnik" School of National Defense visited the Republic Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes and the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs.

Prof. Dr Darija Kisić, Minister of Labor, Employment, Veterans and Social Affairs, and her team presented the work and activities of the Ministry and emphasized that in its organizational structure there is the Sector for Protection of Veterans and Disabled Persons, which is a kind of a link between the institutions. Zoran Antic, the State Secretary, who is also a student of the HSDS, spoke about the work of this sector.

The participants were introduced to the work of the Agency by the director, Dr. Ivica Lazović, who is also a student of the 11th generation of the High Security and Defense Studies (HSDS O) of the "Vojvoda Radomir Putnik" School of National Defense.

The high security and defense studies are the highest level of career development of military officers and civil servants, and the 11th class students include officers of the Ministry of Defense, members of the Ministry of Interior and other ministries, representatives of the National Assembly of Serbia and state agencies. forces of BiH and the Ministry of Interior Affairs of the Republic of Srpska.

The HSDS head, Colonel Branko S. Mišić, thanked for the hospitality and highlighted a wide range od opportunities for cooperation between the institutions.

On 7 March 2022 a presentation of the model for resolving labor disputes in Sweden was organized for the Agency mediators and arbitrators. Johan Schmidt, head of the team Europe at the Olof Palme International Center, spoke about the Swedish model of peaceful resolution of labor disputes.

The lecture was held within the project entitled "Joint actions of social partners to increase the visibility of the concept of peaceful settlement of labor disputes" implemented by the Initiative for Development and Cooperation, with financial support from the International Ulof Palme Center, in partnership with the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Serbia, the INDEPENDENCE Union of Branch Trade Unions, Union of Employers of Serbia and with the support of the Republic Agency for the Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes.

The project contributes to improving compliance with and enforcement of labor law regulations by increasing the visibility and application of effective out-of-court dispute resolution mechanisms, with a special focus on the concept of the peaceful settlement of labor disputes. The project included an additional activity in the form of a lecture with the aim of increasing the knowledge of conciliators, arbitrators and social partners on the functioning of the Swedish model of peaceful settlement of labor disputes.

You can watch the lecture recording at this link.

In the procedure of peaceful settlement of a collective labor dispute on the occasion of concluding a collective agreement with the employer "FCC Kikinda", which was initiated at the suggestion of the "FCC Industrial Union", Nada Crnja, the assigned conciliator, made a recommendation on how to resolve the collective labor dispute.

The conciliator set up a Conciliation Board in accordance with the law, which included the parties to the dispute. With the mediation of the Republic Agency for the Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes, the parties to the dispute, the management and the trade union, had one hearing session on the dispute arising in connection with the conclusion of a collective agreement with the employer.

However, there was no consensus between the parties in dispute, but the employer pointed out that he wanted to continue the procedure through social dialogue with the union, and the conciliator was asked to propose a recommendation in accordance with the Law on Peaceful Settlement of Labor Disputes. Based on the above, the conciliator gave a recommendation to the parties to the dispute.