Rules on Methodology of Calculation of Unpaid House Labor Only First Step – Other Acts to Also Be Adopted

The Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue has adopted the Rules on the Methodology of the Calculation of Unpaid House Labor, which is the first step toward regulating this issue and further activities of the competent state organs.

– The Rules, published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, the issue no. 18 of March 8, came into effect on the eighth day from the date of publication, that is, on March 16 this year, and it is one of the first such national documents in the world – it is said on the website of the ministry.

With these Rules, the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue specifies that, in line with the Law on Gender Equality, unpaid house labor pertains to the jobs which are not paid and which pertain to running a household, child care, care for the elderly and sick family members, jobs at agricultural properties and other similar unpaid jobs.

The starting point for calculating unpaid house labor will be the Survey of the Usage of Time by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, using the Eurostat methodology. The Rules specify that the minimum wage in the Republic of Serbia, in the net amount, on an annual level, is calculated into the value of unpaid house labor, whereby the data on the usage of time are collected by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, and the minimum wage is set by the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veteran and Social Policy. The Rules also determine the methodological basis for determining the share of the value of unpaid house labor in the gross domestic product.

– For all citizens, it is important to point out that the Rules confirm the right, in line with the law which regulates the field of gender equality, that a person who has no health insurance on any other basis acquires the right to health insurance based on unpaid house labor, which practically means that the Ministry of Health will regulate this matter in more detail. Therefore, the Rules on the Methodology of the Calculation of Unpaid House Labor are the beginning of the process which should continue in the Republic of Serbia with the adoption of other acts by the competent organs as well, so that this matter would be fully covered by norms and, as such, be included in the good practice – it is pointed out.

The Work Group which prepared the Rules included the competent state organs – the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veteran and Social Policy, the Ministry of Finance and the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia.

– With the help of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the German Development Cooperation Agency (GIZ), the experiences of foreign countries and the results of local surveys, primarily the Survey of the Usage of Time in the Republic of Serbia, which is carried out by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, were looked into and then, through joint work, the basis of the national methodology for the calculation of unpaid house labor, that is, its share in the gross domestic product, was set – it is said.

The Rules (in Serbian) can be found in the PDF file.

Ministarstvo za ljudska i manjinska prava i društveni dijalog Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo zdravlja Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo za rad, zapošljavanje, boračka i socijalna pitanja Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo finansija Republike Srbije

Republički zavod za statistiku

GIZ Beograd

UN Women Serbia

Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue

Ministry of Health

Ministry of Labor Employment Veteran and Social Policy

Ministry of Finance

Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia

UN Women

German Development Cooperation Agency

GIZ

Rules on the Methodology of the Calculation of Unpaid House Labor

Survey of the Usage of Time

unpaid house labor

Law on Gender Equality