Workplace Mobbing under Serbian Employment Law: Key Considerations for Employers

In the modern working environment, an employer’s responsibility extends beyond organising work processes. It also includes ensuring a safe, supportive, and dignified workplace. One of the most significant risks to such an environment is mobbing—the commonly used term for workplace harassment—which may have serious consequences for both employees and employers.

Although mobbing is discussed with increasing frequency, employers continue to face practical uncertainties: What conduct qualifies as harassment? Does every workplace conflict amount to mobbing? Where is the boundary between legitimate managerial action and unlawful conduct?

The Serbian Law on the Prevention of Harassment at Work adopts a deliberately broad definition of mobbing in order to capture all forms of conduct that may jeopardise an employee’s dignity or working conditions. This breadth, however, places a corresponding responsibility on employers to understand their statutory obligations and to act proactively.

Recognising and preventing mobbing is not only a legal duty, but also a strategic necessity for employers seeking workforce stability, a healthy work environment, and reduced litigation risk. This article outlines the legal elements of mobbing under Serbian law and highlights conduct that may constitute harassment, with the aim of assisting employers in timely intervention and effective employment management.

What Is Workplace Mobbing?

Statutory Definition – A Broad and Inclusive Concept

The statutory definition of mobbing is intentionally broad. The legislator’s aim was to encompass all potential forms of conduct in the workplace that may amount to harassment.

Under the Law on the Prevention of Harassment at Work, workplace harassment (mobbing) exists where the following elements are present:

• active or passive conduct directed at an employee or a group of employees by the employer;

• repetition of such conduct;

• conduct that has the purpose or effect of violating an employee’s dignity, reputation, personal or professional integrity, health, or position; and

• conduct that causes fear, creates a hostile, humiliating, or offensive environment, worsens working conditions, or leads to the employee’s isolation or termination of employment.

This comprehensive definition enables the identification and sanctioning of both overt and subtle forms of harassment.

Active and Passive Forms of Workplace Harassment

Workplace mobbing may take both active and passive forms.

Active harassment typically involves overt conduct such as verbal attacks, insults, intimidation, or denial of rights. Passive harassment, although more subtle, may be equally harmful and is often more difficult to identify.

Examples of Active Mobbing

Active forms of harassment may include:

• shouting, threats, or humiliating communication;

• exclusion from work-related activities;

• denial of tools or resources necessary for work;

• mockery or spreading false information;

• unjustified criticism;

• assignment of inappropriate or degrading tasks;

• excessive or intrusive supervision;

• denial of professional development opportunities;

• threats of dismissal;

• physical harassment; and

• the intentional creation of conflict or stress.

Such conduct may seriously endanger an employee’s physical or psychological health.

Examples of Passive Mobbing

Passive harassment may manifest through:

• deliberate ignoring of an employee;

• avoidance of communication;

• exclusion from meetings or team activities;

• withholding information necessary to perform work duties; and

• various forms of social or professional isolation.

Although less visible, these behaviours may gradually erode an employee’s dignity and professional standing.

Repetition as a Key Element of Mobbing

A central criterion in assessing whether conduct constitutes mobbing is repetition.

Serbian case law generally requires that the disputed conduct occur at least twice in order to distinguish isolated incidents from systematic and continuous negative behaviour.

Can a Single Act Constitute Mobbing?

While mobbing is typically associated with repeated conduct, a single act may exceptionally qualify as harassment if it produces lasting negative consequences.

An example is the reassignment of an employee to a position clearly inconsistent with their qualifications or competencies, where such reassignment permanently undermines the employee’s professional integrity, reputation, or position.

However, a single act alone is not sufficient. All statutory elements of mobbing must still be met.

Violation of Dignity and Professional Integrity – The Core Element

Regardless of whether the conduct is active or passive, mobbing is characterised by actions that have the purpose or effect of violating an employee’s dignity, reputation, personal or professional integrity, health, or position.

Such conduct may:

• create a hostile, humiliating, or offensive environment;

• worsen working conditions;

• negatively affect the employee’s mental or emotional state; and

• lead to isolation or pressure to leave employment.

This protection lies at the heart of Serbian harassment legislation.

What Does Not Constitute Workplace Mobbing?

Workplace mobbing does not include:

• lawful employer decisions regarding rights and obligations arising from employment;

• denial or restriction of rights protected through separate legal remedies;

• disciplinary measures; or

• actions undertaken to ensure occupational safety and health.

For example, if an employee refuses to wear mandatory protective equipment and thereby violates safety regulations, the employer may lawfully issue a warning or initiate disciplinary proceedings. Such conduct does not constitute harassment and is assessed under labour law, not harassment legislation.

Mobbing also does not include discrimination (regulated separately), occasional disagreements, work-related problems, or conflicts—provided they are not intended to violate or intentionally offend the employee.

Who Can Commit Workplace Harassment?

Harassment may be committed by:

• the employer as a natural person;

• a responsible person within a legal entity (vertical mobbing); or

• one or more employees against another employee (horizontal mobbing).

Serbian law therefore recognises harassment both within management structures and among peers.

Employer and Employee Obligations

Employers are obliged to:

• inform employees, prior to commencement of work, of the prohibition of harassment;

• explain rights, obligations, and protection mechanisms;

• actively prevent mobbing through training and awareness; and

• protect employees from harassment.

Employers are liable for damage caused by harassment committed by responsible persons or other employees, while retaining the right to seek reimbursement from the perpetrator.

Employees have the right to protection against harassment, but are also obliged to refrain from harassment themselves and from abusing protection mechanisms. Employees who initiate proceedings without grounds for personal gain or to harm others may be held liable.

Procedure Following a Harassment Complaint

1. Alleged Harassment by Another Employee

If harassment is alleged against another employee, the employer must propose mediation within three days. Mediation is confidential, urgent, and typically completed within eight working days. It is a prerequisite for court proceedings.

2. Alleged Harassment by the Employer or a Responsible Person

Where the alleged harasser is the employer or a responsible person (e.g. a director), mediation is not mandatory. The employee may directly initiate court proceedings within six months of the last act of harassment.

3. Mediation Process

The mediator facilitates discussion but cannot impose a decision. Temporary protective measures may be proposed if irreparable harm is threatened. The process ends through settlement, discontinuation, or withdrawal.

4. Failure of Mediation

If mediation fails, the employer must initiate disciplinary proceedings where appropriate. Measures may include warnings, suspension without pay, reassignment, or termination for repeated harassment.

5. Urgent Protective Measures

In cases of immediate risk to health or life, the employer must act promptly by removing or reassigning the alleged harasser. Failure to do so entitles the employee to refuse work while retaining salary, subject to notification requirements.

Judicial Protection

If internal mechanisms fail, or where the employer or a responsible person is directly involved, the employee may seek judicial protection.

Courts may order declaratory relief, injunctions, corrective measures, damages (material and non-material), and publication of judgments—often with direct operational consequences for employers.

Burden of Proof

A key feature of harassment disputes is the shift in the burden of proof. Once an employee makes harassment plausible, the employer must prove that the conduct did not constitute harassment. This underscores the importance of documentation, policies, and consistent managerial practice.

Interim Measures and Procedural Urgency

Harassment proceedings are legally urgent. Courts may order interim measures—such as prohibitions on contact or workplace access—within eight days, without the possibility of appeal.

Serbian Case Law – Practical Guidance

Serbian courts carefully distinguish between subjective dissatisfaction and objectively provable harassment. Lawful management actions, disciplinary measures, and organisational decisions rarely qualify as mobbing unless they cross into conduct that violates dignity, reputation, or health.

Case law consistently confirms that mobbing requires a clear, consistent, and provable pattern of behaviour exceeding ordinary workplace relations.

For employers, the key takeaway is clear: consistent communication, fair application of procedures, and thorough documentation remain the strongest safeguards against harassment claims.

By Zunic Law, Serbia, a Transatlantic Law International Affiliated Firm. 

For further information or for any assistance please contact serbia@transatlanticlaw.com

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