This year’s average wage growth of nine percent is encouraging and indicates a certain recovery in the labor market, but it does not solve key structural challenges such as labor shortages and mismatches between supply and demand
According to the latest analysis of Plata.ba, a specialized platform for salary research that operates in BiH as part of the Alma Career group, together with the leading job search portal MojPosao.ba, the average salary in 2025 has increased by nine percent. This data, based on the continuous collection of information directly from employees, reveals in which sectors the highest income growth was recorded and how salaries change by entity.
Sectors
With the average net salary rising to 1,772.11 KM in the period January – November 2025 (from 1,632.51 KM a year earlier), the sectors with the most intense income growth stand out: commercial, financial and service.
The analysis of fifteen activities with the highest growth in average net wages shows a colorful picture of the labor market. The highest increases were recorded in advertising and market research, mining and quarrying, financial consulting and financial services intermediation.
Stable wage growth is also present in the retail, textile, food industry, manufacturing and logistics sectors. These data confirm that growth was not only concentrated in highly complex occupations but also in traditional branches of the economy with high employment.
The highest increases were recorded in advertising and market research, mining and quarrying, financial consulting and intermediation of financial services
In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the highest wage growth was achieved in financial services (22.12%), retail trade (20.68%), textile industry (17.91%), hotel industry (17%), catering (16%), other manufacturing (13.62%), food manufacturing (12.83%), other manufacturing (13.62), insurance (12.63%), non-governmental organizations (12.39%), and wholesale (12.32%).
In the Republic of Srpska, the most significant growth was recorded in telecommunications (37.18%), metal processing industry (29.48%), chemical and pharmaceutical production (20.92%), logistics (18.43%), retail trade (15.24%), food industry (14.75%), other production (11.10%), wholesale (7.97%), IT sector (6.19%), and construction industry (4.71%).
The growth of the average salary is certainly a positive signal, but it should be viewed in relation to inflation, especially the growth in the prices of food, housing and services, which reduced the real effect of the increase
These data show that both entities are recording positive trends, but in sectors that correspond to their economic structure.
When it comes to women’s and men’s salaries, in 2025 women recorded an average salary increase of 10 percent, while for men the growth was 7.64 percent. However, despite the faster growth, men still earn on average 13.48 percent more than women. This points to a long-term structural problem, especially in sectors dominated by lower and mid-level positions.
The increase of the minimum net salary in the FBiH to 1,000 KM had a strong impact on the overall movement of salaries in 2025, especially in sectors with a large share of lower paid workers – retail, manufacturing, services and catering. This change not only raised the lowest wages, but also led to corrections of higher pay grades within the companies.
Motivation
In the RS, a different model was applied: a differentiated minimum wage according to professional qualifications. This approach provides stronger protection for more qualified workers, but does not have as strong an effect on the overall average wages as it is the case in FBiH.
The increase in the average salary of nine percent is certainly a positive signal, but it should be viewed in relation to inflation, especially the increase in the prices of food, housing and services, which reduced the real effect of the increase, according to the Mojposa.ba portal. The increase in the minimum wage in FBiH brought significant improvement for the lowest paid workers, while the differentiated model in the RS brought a more moderate effect and limited scope. Nevertheless, the growth of wages in both entities contributed to better motivation of employees, greater competitiveness of employers and reduction of the outflow of labor, especially in sectors with a chronic shortage of personnel.
This year’s wage growth is encouraging and indicates a certain recovery in the labor market, but it does not solve key structural challenges such as labor shortages, regional disparities and mismatches between supply and demand. A real increase in the standard of living will only be possible with a stable economic policy and stronger investments in competences, innovations and retention of talent, he writes. Liberation.
