RESOURCES
Labour law A-Z
Articles, practical guides and legal updates written by our experts.
Special leave
Special leave covers permissions for family events, not deducted from accrued leave within a ten-day ceiling and with no deduction from pay, the durations being set by the collective agreement. Births also open entitlement to a social security allowance paid in three instalments on production of the monitoring certificates.
Staff Delegates: the Counterpart the Law Requires, and Who Can Spare You a Crisis
From eleven employees, the employer must hold an election of staff delegates, elected for three years, their number set by headcount. It receives them at least monthly, replies in writing within six days in a special register and pays up to 15 delegation hours a month. It consults them before several decisions. Dismissing one requires the labour inspector's authorisation; obstruction is a criminal offence.
Staff representatives in Mali: elect, meet, protect
Every establishment with more than ten workers elects staff delegates for three years (Labour Code, art. L.265); union delegates are appointed by a representative union (art. L.258); a health and safety committee is required from 50 employees in industry (art. L.280). These representatives have 15 paid hours a month (art. L.271). Dismissing them requires the labour inspector’s authorisation, failing which it is null and void (art. L.277).
Strikes: notice, minimum service and conciliation
Any issue relating to working life may be the subject of a strike, such as opposition to temporary redundancy, substantial changes to contracts, restrictions, working conditions, pay rises, etc.
Technical and economic short-time working: suspending without terminating
Technical unemployment collectively suspends employment contracts where an accidental event halts activity, after consulting staff delegates and giving prior notice to the Regional Director of Labour. It may not exceed three months: beyond that, or where the employee refuses the proposed terms, any termination is attributable to the employer.
Temporary agency work in Mali: three parties, two contracts, one employer
Temporary agency work involves three parties: the temporary work agency, approved by the minister, remains the employer and places a worker with a user company. Two written contracts are compulsory, for a non-permanent task with a precise end date and 24 months at most. The temp is paid like an employee with the same qualifications and receives a precarity payment. If he keeps working without a contract after the assignment, he becomes an open-ended employee of the user company.
The Certificate of Employment: Four Permitted Particulars, and Everything It Must Not Contain
A certificate of employment is due on final departure, whatever the cause of termination. It states exclusively the date of entry, the date of departure, the nature and dates of successive jobs and the classification category. Reasons for leaving, appraisals and sanctions have no place on it. Its absence or inaccuracy costs XOF 50,000 to 200,000, plus damages.
The Probationary Period: a Freedom to Terminate Earned in Writing and Lost in a Day
Probation exists only if stipulated in writing, with the job, the category and the duration. It lasts in principle as long as the notice period, six months at most including renewal. During probation the worker is paid at his category rate and termination is free, without notice or compensation. Continued one day without renewal, it becomes an open-ended contract from day one.
The apprenticeship contract
The apprenticeship contract is a special type of employment contract obliging the employer to pay an allowance and to provide methodical, complete vocational training. It must be in writing and filed with the labour inspectorate, covers young people aged 14 to 21 for up to three years, and carries a rising allowance of 25%, 50% then 100% of the SMIG.
The commuting accident
A commuting accident is treated as a workplace accident, provided the journey between home and workplace was not interrupted or diverted for a personal reason. The article sets out what breaks that protection, the 48-hour reporting deadlines and the burden of proof, which here falls on the employee.
The company closes or goes bankrupt: are wages guaranteed?
In bankruptcy, wages for the last twelve months have a preferential right over all the employer’s assets, and wage claims rank ahead of all other preferential claims, including the Treasury’s (L.113, L.115). Closure does not exempt the employer from dismissal rules: notice, payments, informing the inspector (L.57). In OHADA collective proceedings, the unattachable portion of the last twelve months is paid first. No wage guarantee fund exists.
The company is sold or merged: what happens to employment contracts?
On a sale, merger, succession or incorporation, all contracts in force continue with the new employer (L.57): pay, category, bonuses and seniority are maintained. Any substantial change requires the employee’s agreement (L.58). A takeover is not a ground for dismissal; duplicate posts follow the economic procedure (L.46 to L.48). INPS contributions become due on the transfer.
177 articles — page 11 of 15
A question about Malian labour law?
Our experts are available to assist you.