Workplace mobbing in Montenegro 2026: what counts as mobbing, a request to the mediator within three months, the Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes, the courts and fines for employers

Under Montenegro's Law on the Prohibition of Harassment at Work, mobbing is any repeated behaviour towards an employee that violates their dignity, reputation and integrity, creates a humiliating or hostile environment or pushes them to resign. You file a written request with the mediator at your employer, or with the employer if no mediator has been appointed, no later than three months after the last act of mobbing. Mediation lasts eight days, and if it fails you turn within 15 days to the Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes or a court. An employer that does not protect its staff pays 500 to 10,000 euros.

This guide explains what mobbing is, how and when to file a request, what the mediator does, when you may stop working, how proceedings before the Agency and the courts work and what the fines are.

What does the law treat as mobbing?

• Mobbing is active or passive behaviour at work or in connection with work towards an employee or a group of employees that is repeated.
• Such behaviour violates dignity, reputation and personal and professional integrity, causes fear or creates a hostile, humiliating or offensive environment, worsens working conditions, isolates the employee or leads them to resign.
• Encouraging or inducing others to behave this way is also mobbing.
• Mobbing can be committed by the employer, a manager, a colleague, a group of colleagues or a third party you deal with at work.
• The law also protects trainees, interns, volunteers and anyone working for the employer on any basis, and it also applies to harassment and sexual harassment.
• Abusing the right to protection, by starting proceedings while knowing there is no mobbing, is also prohibited.

How and when do you file a request?

• You file a written request with details pointing to mobbing with the mediator, or with the employer if no mediator has been appointed.
• An employer with 30 or more employees must appoint a mediator in advance, after consulting the trade union.
• At a smaller employer the mediator is agreed by the employee exposed to mobbing, the employee accused and an employee named by the employer, within three days of the request.
• The right to file a request expires after three months, counted from the day mobbing last took place.
• While that period runs and while mediation lasts, the deadlines for going to the Agency or a court do not run.
• Before a new employee starts work, the employer must inform them in writing of their rights and duties regarding mobbing.

What does the mediator do?

• The mediator starts the procedure within three days of receiving the request, and the procedure is urgent and closed to the public.
• At the request of a party, a trade union representative may also take part.
• Mediation ends within eight days, with an agreement, a decision that mediation failed or a withdrawal, and for justified reasons it can last up to 30 days.
• The agreement sets out measures to stop the mobbing and may recommend moving the employee to another work environment.
• If irreparable harm is threatened, the mediator can propose that the employer ban the person committing mobbing from approaching you or move them to another room.
• If mediation fails, the mediator informs you within three days.

When may you stop working?

• If the employer has not taken the measures the mediator proposed, and a specialist doctor at the competent health institution finds an immediate danger to your health or life, you have the right to stop working until mediation ends.
• Before stopping work you inform the employer.
• During that time you are entitled to pay as if you were working.
• Starting proceedings or giving evidence may not be a reason for dismissal, redundancy, disciplinary proceedings or worse treatment at work.

How do proceedings before the Agency and the courts work?

• If you are not satisfied with the outcome at your employer, within 15 days of the notice or decision you start proceedings at the Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes or in court.
• At the Agency the conciliator schedules a hearing within seven days, and conciliation usually ends within 30 days.
• An agreement reached before the Agency becomes final and enforceable on delivery, and the parties do not pay the conciliator's costs.
• If you show that mobbing is likely to have occurred, the other side must prove that it did not.
• A court can order a ban on approaching you and on access to the area around your workplace, and decides on this within eight days.
• The employer is liable for damage caused by mobbing by a manager or employees, and can claim the amount back from them.

What are the fines?

• Since 2024 the labour inspectorate has supervised compliance with the law.
• An employee who commits mobbing, fails to report it or abuses the right to protection is liable for a breach of work duties.

Dismissal and severance pay are explained in our guide to termination of employment, and pay during illness in our guide to sick leave. The right to a lawyer free of charge is described in our guide to free legal aid, and working time and rest in our guide to annual leave and overtime.

Frequently asked questions

What counts as mobbing at work? Mobbing is repeated behaviour towards an employee that violates their dignity and integrity, creates a humiliating environment or pushes them to resign.

Who do I report mobbing to? You file a written request with the mediator at your employer, or with the employer if no mediator has been appointed.

By when can I report mobbing? No later than three months from the day mobbing last took place.

What if mediation fails? Within 15 days of the notice you start proceedings at the Agency for Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes or in court.

Can I be dismissed for reporting mobbing? No, starting proceedings or giving evidence may not be a reason for dismissal, and an employer who does so pays 500 to 10,000 euros.

Who has to prove mobbing in court? If you show that mobbing is likely to have occurred, the other side must prove that it did not.

Sources

The definition of mobbing, the procedure at the employer, the deadlines, court protection and fines are set by the Law on the Prohibition of Harassment at Work (Official Gazette 30/2012, 54/2016 and 84/2024, Articles 2 to 30), and supervision by the labour inspectorate by the 2024 law (Official Gazette 84/2024, Article 41). Proceedings before the Agency are set by the Law on Peaceful Settlement of Labour Disputes (Official Gazette 145/2021, Articles 56, 65, 68 and 69) with its 2025 amendments (Official Gazette 160/2025). The information was checked on 27 September 2026. Fijaka is a classifieds platform; this text is not legal advice.