Original article (in Slovenian) was published on 12/11/2025; Author: David Bajec
The Employment Service of Slovenia (ESS) explained that a person is removed from the unemployment register only when they unjustifiably breach the obligations set out in the contract for participation in an active employment policy programme.
Zmago Jelinčič Plemeniti, president of the non-parliamentary National Party (SNS), claimed in an 11 October post on X that that ESS staff delete individuals from the register of active jobseekers if they do not respond to their phone call, based on instructions from the competent ministry. This does not necessarily mean that unemployment has actually declined, he asserted.
He also claimed that the information he shared had been given to him by ESS counsellors. According to him, the decline in Slovenia’s unemployment rate is therefore statistical and not real.
Publicly available data show that the ESS does not have the register mentioned by Jelinčič Plemeniti. Instead, it keeps two separate databases, a register of the unemployed and a register of jobseekers. To be entered in the register of the unemployed, a person must be able to work, actively seek employment and be willing to accept a job offer. They must not be employed, self-employed, a company or institute director, insured as a farmer, retired, or hold the status of a student, apprentice, or adult-education participant under the age of 26.
The jobseeker register, on the other hand, is open to employed and self-employed persons, homemakers, students, and other inactive individuals.
Jelinčič Plemeniti referred to a post shared by the government on X on 8 October, namely that unemployment in Slovenia in August this year was 2.9% according to Eurostat, “which puts us among the countries with the lowest unemployment in the European Union”.
The ESS told Razkrinkavanje.si that a person listed in the unemployment register who does not respond to a phone call from an official will not be removed from the register. Ignoring a call is not considered a breach of the obligations which the unemployed person undertakes by signing a contract on participation in an active employment policy programme.
A person is removed from the unemployment register only when they breach the obligations undertaken with the contract for the second time. In the case of a first violation, the ESS offers the person the opportunity to explain the facts and circumstances of the violation and to submit evidence relating to these circumstances. If they do not do so, the ESS issues a decision noting the breach, which is valid for six months from delivery.
According to the ESS, the reasons for removal from the register of the unemployed or from the register of persons participating in active employment policy programmes are defined by the Labour Market Regulation Act. This act stipulates that the ESS may remove a person from the register in several cases, for example, if they refuse participation in an active employment policy programme, violate the obligations accepted with the contract, refuse suitable or appropriate employment, or do not make an effort to obtain employment during a job interview.
Other grounds for exclusion from the register include the person not providing truthful information on meeting the conditions for obtaining the status of an unemployed person or the status of a person included in an active employment policy programme, and a finding by the competent authority that the person is or was working illegally.
A person whom the ESS no longer registers as unemployed due to violations of obligations may register in the jobseeker register, they explained. A jobseeker likewise receives information about employment opportunities but no longer has access to individual counselling and assistance in preparing an employment plan or in seeking employment.
This year, the ESS removed a total of 12,100 people from the unemployment register. Of these, 2,273 were removed due to breaches of contractual obligations, 3,754 deregistered voluntarily, and 4,443 became inactive, meaning that they either retired or entered full-time education. Seventy-two unemployed persons moved abroad, and the remaining 1,558 were removed for other reasons.
The government’s post referred to survey-based unemployment, which the Statistical Office publishes monthly. The Statistics Office classifies these monthly estimates as experimental statistics that are less reliable, as they are obtained through sampling and should therefore be used cautiously. By contrast, registered unemployed refers to person, who are registered with the ESS that meet all the unemployment criteria set by the ESS.
We have informed Zmago Jelinčič Plemeniti of our findings and will publish his response when we receive it.
The claim that the ESS deletes individuals from the unemployment register for ignoring a phone call is false.
