Employment law
The qualification contract and the internship contract
Two integration schemes, two target groups, two pay regimes, and one boundary not to cross with ordinary employment.
Between initial education and lasting employment, Malian law organises integration schemes. They share one logic: the company hosts a young person in return for a training commitment, and pay is reduced during that phase.
That counterpart is what justifies the regime. A qualification contract with no qualification transmitted, or an internship filling a permanent post, is not an integration scheme: it is employment under the wrong legal label, exposed to reclassification.
1. Two schemes, two target groups
| Qualification contract | Scheme for unqualified young people | |
|---|---|---|
| Target group | Young people aged 35 or under, holding a vocational qualification | Young people aged 14 to 21, finishing studies or unqualified |
| Purpose | Completing a qualification with professional experience | Acquiring initial training in a work setting |
| The company's commitment | Putting the young person in a position to exercise their qualification | Providing supervised training |
| Pay | Half the contractual salary for the equivalent post, as a minimum | Pay equivalent to that of an internship |
Alongside these two schemes, the apprenticeship contract has its own regime, with mandatory writing, filing with the labour inspectorate and a rising allowance. See Apprenticeship. Labour Code, Articles L.7 and L.8 (French).
2. The length of the qualification contract
The contract is concluded for six months, renewable up to three times, giving a maximum total of twenty-four months.
| Element | Rule |
|---|---|
| Initial duration | 6 months |
| Renewals | 3 maximum |
| Total duration | 24 months maximum |
This limit is the main point to watch. At twenty-four months the scheme is exhausted: the relationship continues under an ordinary contract, or it ends. Extending it beyond that risks reclassification, with the usual consequences.
3. Pay
The minimum pay that may be due is half the contractual salary applicable to the equivalent post.
Three useful clarifications:
- this is a minimum, not a ceiling: nothing prevents paying more, and many companies do to attract the best candidates;
- the reference is the contractual salary for the equivalent post, not the minimum wage: the post's classification must therefore be identified before calculating;
- the collective agreement may set a more favourable percentage, and then prevails.
4. What distinguishes these schemes from ordinary employment
The boundary turns on one question: is the company transmitting anything?
| Sign of a proper scheme | Sign of disguised employment |
|---|---|
| An identified supervisor and a defined training path | No mentor, no organised progression |
| Activities chosen for their training value | A production post like any other |
| A limited duration, with a known end | A succession of contracts over several years |
| An assessment at the end | No review |
The second case risks reclassification as an ordinary contract, with back pay for the difference. The logic is the same as for fixed-term contracts: these arrangements cannot have the effect of permanently filling a job linked to the company's normal, ongoing activity. Labour Code, Article L.22 (French).
5. What to write into the contract
- The purpose of the scheme: the qualification to be completed or the training to be acquired.
- The supervisor's name and their role.
- The host post and the reference classification, which forms the basis for calculating pay.
- The initial duration and renewal terms, within the twenty-four-month limit.
- The training programme or planned activities, even briefly described.
- The assessment arrangements at the end.
6. And at the end of the scheme?
Nothing obliges the company to hire the young person. But where it does, the contract concluded is an ordinary one, most often open-ended, and pay rises to the post's contractual level.
Two useful reflexes at decision time: anticipate the end several weeks ahead, to avoid extension by default; and formalise the assessment of the path taken, which documents both the training commitment met and the hiring decision.
Key takeaways
| The rule | What it implies |
|---|---|
| Qualification: 35 or under, with a vocational qualification | A defined group, to verify before hosting |
| 6 months, renewable 3 times, 24 months in total | At the end: an ordinary contract, or the end of the relationship |
| Pay: half the contractual salary | A minimum, calculated on the equivalent post |
| Young people aged 14 to 21: a separate scheme | Supervised training and internship-level pay |
| The counterpart is training | Without transmission, the scheme is disguised employment |
| No filling of a permanent job | The fixed-term rule applies here too |