Sustainable forest management undoubtedly implies a sustainable workforce. Work in forestry, however, represents one of the most complex and dangerous professions, and the lack of production workers and interest in forestry work has been a severe difficulty in recent years. The same is most often caused by various external and internal factors (within or beyond the scope of influence of the forestry sector itself), which significantly affect the sustainability of the workforce in forestry. Such factors are, for example, population migration, population aging, low birth rate, etc., i.e., working conditions, motivation and compensation of workers, job security, etc. The conducted research aimed to determine the state and characteristics of the labour force in the forestry of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) (profile and structure, socioeconomic characterfactorsriteria, etc.) and examine the extent of the shortage of forest workers. The work aims to find and define possible strategic directions for strengthening the sustainability of the labour force and to develop instruments and procedures for their evaluation and decision-making on optimal strategic recommendations. Basic scientific methods and techniques, survey and interview methods, case studies, SWOT analysis, and AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) method of multi-criteria decision-making were applied in the research. Data collection through survey questionnaires through a sample of respondents included three constituent segments, i.e., levels in FBiH forestry: a) institutional (forestry administration, science, and education, interest groups), c) company level (professional and technical staff of private and public forest companies) and c) forest workers (loggers, tractor drivers, assistants, choker setters, etc.). The designed questionnaire consisted of three parts, i.e., groups of questions through which the following were collected: a) socio-demographic data on the respondents, b) general attitudes about work in forestry and the profession of forest workers, and c) data on the evaluation of factors of sustainability of the labour force in forestry expressed through elements recruitment, retention, and commitment of workers. In parallel with the data collection, the strategic documents of FBiH forestry were reviewed and analyzed. An effort was made to assess the degree of strategic planning and management of labour force development in forestry to ensure its sustainability. A methodological case study approach was applied to analyze and describe selected examples of good practice in more detail and provide additional grounds for elaborating possible 'scenarios' in strengthening the sustainability of the workforce. Based on the knowledge gained from the conducted analyses, four strategic approaches or orientations in improving the sustainability of the labour force were determined. In developing individual strategic methods, their primary goals, measures, activities, stakeholders, holders, etc., were defined. For the strategies thus described, a SWOT analysis was carried out, which considered each approach's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. As a complement to the SWOT analysis, for the evaluation and comparison of defined strategies, the AHP method was additionally applied. The research findings showed that the vast majority of respondents (93%) consider the labour shortage a very significant and increasingly growing problem in FBiH forestry. The average age of forest workers is 43 years, more than 60% are older than 40, and the share of workers under 25 is only 3%. More than two-thirds of forest workers live in rural areas (settlements with less than 2,000 inhabitants), where the emigration of young people is significant. The leading cause of the labor shortage is the departure of the working-age population abroad and unfavorable demographic trends. The main reasons for the difficulty in attracting and retaining workers are the physicallydemanding and tiring work in different field conditions and generally weak interest in forest work. The most critical factors for the successful attraction and retention of workers are those within the financial compensation of workers (job stability and regular income, higher regular wages, rewarding workers, pay according to work results, etc.). Among the most critical factors for ensuring more outstanding commitment of workers to work are consistent and transparent salary policy criteria, a clear description of work and tasks, and good cooperation and relations within the company. The research also established that in FBiH, there is no systematic and strategic approach to the issue of workforce sustainability in forestry and that the federal and county forestry ministries and public forestry companies are considered the most responsible in this regard. Furthermore, as possible strategic approaches to the sustainability of the FBiH forestry labour force, the following are defined with their elements: 1) Direct financial strategy, 2) Indirect financial strategy, 3) Educational strategy, and 4) Technical-technological strategy. According to the results of the AHP analysis, the optimal strategic orientations are the technical-technological strategy, which implies more effective use of mechanized (machine) logging, and the educational strategy, which emphasizes the training and education of forest workers. The research results enabled new knowledge about the workforce's state, position, and sustainability in FBiH forestry. An innovative methodological approach has also been developed, which, through a combination of several research methods and procedures, enables inclusive creation, a comprehensive overview, and a multi-criteria evaluation and rational selection of the optimal strategic orientation of the sustainability of the labour force in forestry.