Employment law
Fixed-term employment contracts (CDD) in Mali
When a fixed-term contract is allowed, how to draft it, how it ends, and what getting it wrong costs.
A fixed-term employment contract, known in Mali as a CDD, allows an employer to hire an employee for a limited period, or for work whose completion brings the contract to an end. Its use is regulated: it must not permanently fill a position connected with the company's normal, ongoing business activity.
One image to carry through the rest of this article: an open-ended contract is a contract left open, which one day gets closed; a fixed-term contract is already closed at signature. Everything that follows flows from that difference. It is what makes the CDD the most rigid contract in Malian labour law: it is not ended simply because it no longer suits the parties. Labour Code, Articles L.18 and L.22 (French).
1. When can a fixed-term contract be used?
A CDD meets a temporary, clearly identified staffing need: replacing an absent employee, handling a temporary increase in activity, performing seasonal work or completing a specific project.
Its end can take two forms, and the choice changes what must be written into the contract:
| Type of term | What ends the contract | What the contract must state |
|---|---|---|
| Precise term | A date agreed at the outset | The end date, and any clause allowing it to be postponed |
| Imprecise term | A future event certain to occur, on a date not yet known: return of the replaced employee, completion of works | A minimum duration: without it, the contract is incomplete |
So a company may recruit someone to replace an employee whose contract is temporarily suspended. The contract must then clearly identify the replacement arrangement. Labour Code, Articles L.18 and L.20 (French).
2. A written contract with clear terms
A CDD must be in writing. The consequence of failing to do so often comes as a surprise: the absence of a written contract does not weaken it, it converts it into an open-ended contract.
The contract must specify its purpose and include, as applicable:
- the position or job concerned;
- the end date and any clause allowing that date to be postponed;
- a minimum duration if there is no precise end date;
- the name and professional qualification of the employee being replaced;
- the length of any probationary period.
Probation, where it exists, must also be expressly stipulated in writing: probation agreed orally cannot be enforced against the employee. And for a CDD lasting more than three months, the employer must lodge the contract with the competent Labour Inspectorate before work begins. Labour Code, Article L.21 (French); Decree No. 2022-0125/PT-RM, revised Article D.20-1 (French).
3. How long can it last, and how often can it be renewed?
Two ceilings apply together, and crossing either one is enough to trigger conversion:
| Rule | Ceiling | Useful detail |
|---|---|---|
| Total duration | 2 years | A defined-project contract is exempt, but cannot be renewed |
| Renewals | 2 with the same employer | The initial contract does not count as a renewal |
Exceptions apply, notably to seasonal contracts, temporary replacements, temporary increases in activity, certain very short engagements and certain jobs where using an indefinite contract is not customary. The contract category must therefore be checked before applying the two-renewal limit.
What happens if a ceiling is crossed? Continuing the employment relationship outside the statutory conditions results, by operation of law, in an indefinite contract. In other words: the conversion is automatic, no one needs to ask a court for it, and the employer ends up bound by an open-ended contract it never intended. Labour Code, Articles L.20 and L.21 (French).
4. Can the contract end early?
This is the most common question, and the answer is stricter than most expect. Article L.25 provides only three grounds:
- gross misconduct (faute lourde);
- a written agreement between the parties;
- force majeure.
Three doors, no more. Dissatisfaction, underperformance, a downturn in activity or an employee's wish to leave are not among them.
The cost of an irregular termination is easy to calculate: where the employer terminates outside these grounds, the employee may receive damages equal to the remuneration they would have earned until the agreed end of the contract. Ending a two-year contract after three months therefore means, in practice, paying for the remaining twenty-one. Labour Code, Article L.25 (French).
5. What payment may be due when the contract ends?
When employment does not continue, the employee may qualify for an end-of-contract payment intended to compensate for the temporary nature of the employment. Where no rate is set by a collective agreement, the minimum is 2.5% of the total gross remuneration received during the contract. It is added to the final salary.
Example: total gross remuneration of CFA 1,200,000 produces an end-of-contract payment of CFA 30,000 at the 2.5% rate, provided the employee qualifies. Decree No. 2022-0125/PT-RM, revised Article D.24-1 (French).
This payment is not automatic. The Code sets out exclusions:
| Situation | Payment due? |
|---|---|
| The contract reaches its term and does not continue | Yes |
| The employee refuses an equivalent indefinite position at no lower pay | No |
| The employee terminates the contract on their own initiative | No |
| Termination results from the employee's misconduct | No |
| Hourly or daily engagements, seasonal contracts, temporary replacements, customary sectors | No |
Labour Code, Article L.24 (French).
6. One prohibition worth knowing: a recent redundancy
Following a redundancy on economic grounds, the company may not use a fixed-term contract on the eliminated positions for six months. The only exception is a non-renewable contract of no more than three months.
This check should be made before any drafting, and it is easily overlooked, because it concerns the history of the position rather than that of the candidate. Labour Code, Article L.23 (French).
7. What rules apply to foreign workers?
Contracts of foreign workers are subject to additional formalities: they must be written and submitted to the National Directorate of Labour for approval, accompanied by a work permit.
During the first two years of permanent residence in Mali, foreign workers may generally be employed only under a fixed-term contract, subject to applicable reciprocal agreements. A foreign worker recruited locally is not automatically classified as an expatriate. Labour Code, Article L.26 (French).
Key takeaways
The indefinite contract is the rule and the fixed-term contract the exception: it must meet a clearly identified temporary need, and it is never presumed.
| Before signing | During the contract | At the end |
|---|---|---|
| Check the ground, the position's history and the contract category | Count the renewals and watch the two-year mark | Calculate the 2.5% payment and check the exclusions |
| Draft the full written contract and file it if it exceeds three months | Terminate only for faute lourde, written agreement or force majeure | Do not let the relationship simply continue without a decision |