Labor law in Kiribati

An employment relationship is assessed by practical factors such as the employer's direction and control, the worker's integration into the organization, personal performance, the specified workplace, employer-provided tools or travel, and who carries financial risk. The employer and employee must sign a written contract of service containing at least the particulars required by Schedule 4 of the EIRC. The employee may seek independent legal advice at personal cost or request information from a union or the Ministry of Employment and Human Resource Development. The employee must receive a signed copy. If no written contract exists or the employer cannot produce it, the relationship is presumed to be indefinite. A private employment agency recruiting workers for employment in Kiribati or overseas requires a licence from the Commissioner for Labour and Human Resource Development. Operating without the required licence can lead to a fine of up to AUD 500 or imprisonment for up to six months. The Labour Division, Labour Inspectors, the Work Relations Unit and the Registrar of Industrial Relations handle different employment and dispute functions. The Occupational Health and Safety Unit handles workplace safety matters. The Ministry is based in Bairiki, Tarawa; the available rules do not establish a separate legal regime for outer islands. Published Ministry wage information lists a minimum of AUD 1.30 per hour for private-sector and private construction work and AUD 3.00 per hour for foreign-funded projects and construction. The applicable wage order and any territorial or sector exceptions should be checked before relying on a rate. An employer must display the applicable wage order. The Minister's order prevails over a lower contractual or collective rate. Wages paid hourly, daily or weekly must normally be paid at least twice each month; monthly, annual, piece-rate and task-based wages must normally be paid at least once each month. Payment is normally made in cash at or near the workplace unless the employee gives written consent or requests another method, such as a bank transfer or cheque. Permitted deductions include tax, provident-fund contributions and other deductions required by law. Deductions for member funds require the employee's written consent or request. An employer may recover a mistaken overpayment only for the preceding three months, and other non-legal deductions may not exceed one third of the pay for the relevant pay period. A written or electronic payslip must show the applicable rates, ordinary and overtime hours, gross pay, allowances, deductions and their reasons, and net pay. Employers must retain employment records for at least six years. If an employer becomes insolvent, unpaid employee wages receive priority under the applicable insolvency rules. Ordinary working time is limited to eight hours per day and 40 hours per week. Additional hours must be reasonable, and an employee may refuse hours that are unreasonable. The assessment considers health and safety, family responsibilities, workplace needs, overtime entitlement and the employee's role and responsibility. A full-time employee must receive at least 12 consecutive hours of daily rest and 48 consecutive hours of weekly rest. Work exceeding six consecutive hours requires a one-hour meal break and either one 20-minute tea break or two 10-minute tea breaks. A nursing employee receives a paid 30-minute break every four hours until the child reaches 12 months. Changes to working hours require consultation and reasonable notice. Night workers may request a health assessment and advice and should be transferred where practicable if health problems make night work unsuitable. A pregnant employee must have an alternative to night work from at least 16 weeks of pregnancy and during the eight weeks before the expected birth. The EIRC's leave rules exclude casual employees and generally provide part-time employees with pro-rata entitlements. Annual paid leave can reach 30 days for each completed year, with pro-rata entitlement after six months. A public holiday is paid for the employee's normal scheduled hours; working on the holiday gives the normal entitlement plus pay for the work performed. After six months of service, sick leave can reach 20 working days per year. The employee must notify the employer promptly and provide a medical certificate when requested. After six months of service, compassionate leave provides three paid days per year for the death or serious illness or injury of a family member, subject to supporting evidence. Maternity leave lasts 12 consecutive weeks, including at least six weeks after birth. A medical certificate is required at least four weeks before leave, and payment must be at least 25 percent of remuneration. The employee must return to the same or an equivalent role without loss of salary, benefits or seniority. The Commissioner can grant a hardship exemption for a transitional period of up to 24 months under section 96. An employer may terminate employment only for a valid reason connected with capacity, conduct or reduced operational requirements. The employer must give the reason in writing at termination. For capacity or conduct concerns, the usual process includes notifying the employee, allowing a response, issuing a warning, providing a genuine chance and assistance to improve, and allowing the employee to choose a representative. For redundancy, the employer should consider redeployment to a similar or equivalent role, including duties, pay, responsibility and location, and follow applicable information, consultation, contract and collective-agreement rules. Termination because of protected attributes, temporary illness or injury, union membership or activity, a complaint or proceeding, maternity leave, or pregnancy-related illness within 12 weeks is unlawful. Written notice is normally one week for service of less than one year, two weeks for one to less than three years, three weeks for three to less than five years, and four weeks for five years or more. A longer contractual or collective-agreement period prevails. Payment in lieu of notice is permitted, and the employee must receive reasonable paid time to look for work. Fixed-term or task-based employment and some casual employment under six months have specific exceptions. Summary dismissal is limited to serious misconduct and still requires a response opportunity, consideration of warnings and mitigating factors, representation, and written reasons. Final wages and benefits, including accrued leave, must be paid by the end of the following working day. The employer must provide a service certificate when the employee requests one. The EIRC prohibits direct and indirect discrimination in recruitment, training, promotion, employment terms and termination. Protected grounds include ethnic origin, race, colour, national extraction, social origin, class, economic status, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, family responsibilities, age, health, HIV or AIDS, disability, religion, political opinion, union activity, and participation in a dispute, investigation or proceeding. Men and women must receive equal remuneration for work of equal value. Discriminatory job advertisements and HIV, sexually transmitted infection or pregnancy screening as a condition of employment are prohibited. Sexual harassment and victimisation are prohibited, and each can attract a fine of up to AUD 1,000. Forced labour can attract a fine of up to AUD 100,000 or imprisonment for up to 25 years. The current ILO-reported position places the general minimum age for work, including apprenticeships, at 15 and sets the compulsory-school age at 15. Accessible versions of the EIRC and Ministry summaries still state 14, with light work permitted at ages 12 and 13, while a consolidated text of the reported 2021 amendment was not available. Anyone relying on a child-work rule should verify the current Gazette or consolidated legislation. Hazardous work and the worst forms of child labour are prohibited, employers must keep a child-work register, and inspectors have authority to remove a child from work in specified circumstances. The Occupational Health and Safety Act 2015, as amended in 2018, requires an employer to provide a safe workplace and safety facilities without charging the employee. Safety records must generally be retained for at least five years. A workplace with more than 25 employees must have a health and safety committee. Employees must take reasonable care and cooperate with safety measures. An employee may stop work where there is an immediate or imminent serious danger, notify the employer, and remain protected from undue consequences until remedial action is taken. The employee should not return until the danger has been addressed. Safety inspectors may enter and inspect workplaces, copy records, question people, begin a stop-work process for imminent danger, and issue improvement, prohibition or infringement notices. The employer must immediately report a serious accident, work-related illness, occupational disease or dangerous incident. The accident site must be preserved after a death unless action is needed to save life or prevent further danger. A notice can be reviewed by the Secretary within seven days, and a High Court appeal may be available within 30 days. Corporate breaches can attract a fine of up to AUD 10,000; individual liability can include a fine of up to AUD 2,000 and imprisonment for up to one year. Workers may establish or join a trade union, and employers may establish or join an employer organization. Employers must not interfere with those rights. The Registrar handles registration, and registered representative bodies may bargain collectively. The parties must bargain in good faith, and collective agreements must be registered and followed. The Tripartite Decent Work Advisory Board provides advice and has a role in minimum-wage matters. The Kiribati Trade Union Congress, Kiribati Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Kiribati Major Employers Association are national representative bodies. Industrial action must follow the workplace and collective procedures in Part XV of the EIRC. Essential services require at least 14 days' notice, and a strike involving more than 50 employees requires a majority ballot. Essential services include food and fuel distribution, electricity, fire services, emergency health services, air services, police, ports, prisons, sanitation, search and rescue, shipping, emergency telecommunications and potable water. A strike, lockout or boycott can be unlawful when the required procedures are skipped. A worker or employer reporting a labor dispute should send a written report to the Registrar of Industrial Relations. The report should state the issues, describe the workplace steps already taken, and include a copy for the other party. The usual deadlines are 28 working days for a termination complaint, 12 months for discrimination or equal-opportunity complaints, and six years for claims under Parts V, VIII, IX and X. The Registrar should act within seven working days by using a workplace procedure, conciliation, arbitration, or an investigation or prosecution by the Commissioner. If one step fails, the matter should normally be referred to the next step within seven working days. Conciliation can last up to one month. After failed conciliation, arbitration may be requested; public-service authority disputes or matters threatening the community can follow the applicable arbitration process, with arbitration generally lasting up to three months. An arbitration award is final and binding subject to appeal. Available outcomes can include damages, compensation, costs and remedial orders. A High Court appeal normally has a 28-working-day limit. A party may represent itself or use an organization or employee representative; a lawyer requires permission. No public filing fee was identified for the Registrar process. The Work Relations Unit can be contacted through extension 215 and the Occupational Health and Safety Unit through extension 206. Legal advice normally costs the employee unless an award or another applicable rule provides otherwise.