Employment in Zambia

The 2024 figures recorded 1,791,290 paid employees in Zambia, including 43,146 paid apprentices and 8,149 paid interns. Formal employment is generally connected with an identifiable employer, an employment contract, payroll records and statutory contributions. Informal work remains a major source of income, but access to employee protections, registration and social insurance can be less consistent. Self-employed and informal workers may have voluntary or self-employed access to NAPSA and NHIMA, but this does not create the same protection as formal employment. People find work through direct applications, personal or professional networks, employer and sector portals, the MLSS Employment Unit employment-exchange services, ZELMIS/LMIS and private employment agencies. A private agency must hold a permit from the Labour Commissioner. The permit lasts one year and can be renewed. An agency may charge an applicant no more than 500 fee units, and 50% of that fee must be refunded if the agency makes no placement within three months. Check the agency's permit, fee and written conditions before paying. Official public-service vacancies are published through PSMD and the Civil Service Commission rather than through an unverified intermediary. The Employment Code Act 2019 provides the main employment framework. It gives priority to citizens for employment, while a non-citizen generally needs an employment permit. The Immigration Control Act 2026 had been enacted but was not yet in force at the research date, so transitional immigration requirements should be checked with the responsible authority before work begins. Employment may begin with an oral or written agreement, but a written contract is required when the employment lasts at least six months or covers the equivalent of six months of working days in a year. The employer must explain the terms clearly and obtain voluntary agreement. The contract should state the parties, start date and duration, workplace, position, duties, working hours, pay, payment interval, leave, notice period and grounds for termination, together with agreed benefits. Three copies must be prepared for attestation within 30 days, and the Labour Commissioner must be notified within 30 days. Employees have protection against discrimination, a right to equal pay for work of equal value, protection related to disability, wage protection and access to union activity and collective bargaining. Statutory leave can include paid public holidays, annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, compassionate leave and family-responsibility leave. The exact entitlement may also depend on the sector, contract and applicable collective agreement. The Employment Code prohibits casualisation and forced labour. Zambia has no single universal minimum wage for every occupation. Sectoral Minimum Wage Orders apply to categories such as general workers, domestic workers and shop workers. Statutory Instruments 48, 49 and 50 of 2023 took effect on 1 January 2024, with exceptions including civil service, local authorities, management employees and workers covered by unionised collective agreements. Wages must be paid at least monthly. From 10 April 2025, the minimum for non-unionised public service vehicle bus drivers was K3,000 and for truck drivers K4,000; current orders and notices should be checked because wage rates can change. Formal employment also creates reporting and contribution duties. NAPSA contributions total 10% of gross pay, normally split into 5% from the employee and 5% from the employer, and are due monthly by the 10th of the following month. The NAPSA portal currently lists a maximum contribution of K2,892.03. NHIMA requires employer registration within 30 days and contributions of 1% from the employee and 1% from the employer based on declared income or the applicable assessment. PAYE is calculated, deducted and remitted by the employer to ZRA. Employees should compare payslips with their contract and check whether deductions and registrations have been handled correctly. Employment can end through notice, payment instead of notice, redundancy or another lawful contractual basis. If the contract does not state a notice period, the periods are 24 hours for employment of up to one month, 14 days for employment lasting more than one month but no more than three months, and 30 days for employment lasting more than three months. Notice must be written when the employment exceeds six months and cannot run during statutory leave. A redundancy requires at least 30 days' notice together with information and consultation. At the end, request a Certificate of Service and check final pay, unused leave, notice pay and contribution records. A workplace complaint normally begins with the employer's internal grievance procedure. The MLSS Labour Department can provide complaints, mediation and inspection services through provincial and district offices. The Industrial Relations Division or Industrial Relations Court handles employer-employee disputes; the MLSS Service Charter generally refers to a 90-day complaint period, but the correct forum and deadline depend on the dispute. Keep the contract, payslips, notices, messages and grievance records because they may be needed to establish what happened.