Beyond the Worker: Social Welfare Exclusion of Labour Migrant Families in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Abstract

This paper explores how Bosnia and Herzegovina’s fragmented welfare system responds to the needs of transnational labour migrant families, a problem of growing significance as the country transitions from an emigration context to a destination for low-wage foreign workers. Gaps in access to healthcare, education, and family services generate social inequalities that risk long-term exclusion. The objective of the study is to identify the administrative, legal, and political barriers migrant families face and to provide recommendations for improving institutional responses. Methodologically, the paper relies on narrative policy analysis and legal-institutional review, with a theoretical grounding in transnational social protection, governance studies, and intersectionality. The sample consists of relevant legislation, strategic policy documents, and public discourse, complemented by regional comparisons with Croatia and Serbia. The findings demonstrate that access to social rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina remains tightly linked to employment contracts and residency permits, leaving many families without adequate protection. Moreover, public and political narratives often racialise migrants or reduce them to purely economic actors, overlooking their broader social vulnerabilities. The paper concludes that Bosnia and Herzegovina must develop a centralised, rights-based welfare framework to address the structural exclusion of transnational families. Recommendations include strengthening institutional coordination, depoliticising migration in public debate, and adapting social services to the needs of migrant workers and their children.