Labor law in Zambia

The Employment Code Act 2019 applies to employees, including casual employees and apprentices, but generally excludes independent contractors and piece workers. It excludes the Defence Force, Zambia Police Service, Zambia Correctional Service and Zambia Security Intelligence Service, subject to further statutory exceptions. Casual work is work that is not permanent or lasts less than six months. A casual employee is paid hourly, receives a 25% casual loading and is generally paid daily, with no more than 24 hours in one engagement. Using casual arrangements to avoid statutory duties is prohibited. Employment contracts may be permanent, long-term, for a specific task or subject to probation. Probation may last up to three months and may be extended once for up to three further months. The employer has to assess the employee and communicate the result before probation ends; without written confirmation after the permitted period, the employment is treated as confirmed. A contract lasting at least six months, or involving at least an equivalent number of working days in a year, must be written. The employer must explain the terms and provide particulars such as the start date, duration, workplace, working hours, pay, benefits, payment interval, deductions, duties and termination rules. Three copies must reach an authorised officer for attestation within 30 days. A normal full-time workday contains eight hours of actual work. An agreement may allow additional work without extra pay up to 48 hours per week, or a lower limit set by the contract or collective agreement. Hours above 48 per week are paid at one and a half times the hourly rate. Watchpersons and guards working above 60 hours receive the same overtime rate. Work on a public holiday or weekly rest day outside the normal working week is paid at double time. Employees receive 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest in every seven-day period and, on each working day, a one-hour meal break plus a 20-minute health break or two 10-minute health breaks. Wages fall due according to the agreed payment interval and no later than the fifth day after that interval ends. Employers have to keep wage records. Deductions are limited to lawful grounds such as social-security or fund contributions, written consent, an advance, a court order or specified damage claims. A fixed-term employee generally receives gratuity of at least 25% of basic pay over the contract period, calculated proportionally where the Code permits termination. NAPSA registration is generally due within one month, but the applicable registration, contribution and earnings-ceiling parameters should be checked against the current National Pension Scheme Act 2026 and NAPSA information. The latest researched minimum-wage orders took effect on 1 January 2024 and should be checked for later revisions. Under General Order SI 48/2023, listed monthly rates range from K1,487 to K2,861.36 and hourly rates from K7.15 to K13.76, depending on the category. The order also provides a 30% housing allowance, K200 transport where the workplace is more than three kilometres away and the employer provides no transport, K180 for lunch where no adequate free meal is supplied, night allowances of K390 inland or USD25 abroad, a 15% shift differential for work from 18:00 to 06:00 and a death grant consisting of a standard coffin and K1,500. Shop workers are covered by SI 50/2023, with monthly rates from K1,487 to K3,142.26 and hourly rates from K7.15 to K15.10. Domestic workers are covered by SI 49/2023 at least at K1,100 per month or K5.29 per hour, excluding rations. Civil servants, local-authority employees, domestic workers, management, some unionised employees covered by collective agreements and other listed categories may fall outside the General Order. Annual leave is at least two days per month after 12 months of continuous employment. Paid public holidays do not reduce that entitlement. Certified sickness allows 26 working days on full pay followed by 26 on half pay for short-term illness, or three months on full pay followed by three months on half pay for long-term illness. Compassionate leave is at least 12 days per year. After six months of employment, family-responsibility leave may provide up to seven paid days for illness affecting a spouse, child or dependant and three further paid days for care, health or education matters involving those family members. Maternity leave lasts 14 weeks, including at least six weeks after birth, with four additional weeks for a multiple birth. Full maternity pay generally requires at least 24 months with the same employer and no payment from another maternity-benefit source. Dismissal because of pregnancy or maternity is prohibited. A nursing employee receives two 30-minute breaks or one hour per workday while the child is six months old or younger. Paternity leave is at least five consecutive working days after 12 months of employment, supported by a birth record and taken within seven days of the birth. The Code also recognises one Mother’s Day absence day per month and forced leave at basic pay. Employers have to provide equal opportunity and equal pay for work of equal value. Discrimination is prohibited on grounds including nationality, tribe, origin, language, race, social origin, religion, belief, political opinion, sex, gender, pregnancy, marital status, ethnicity, family responsibility, disability, health, culture and economic status. Undertakings have to maintain policies covering HIV and AIDS, health and wellness, harassment, performance, grievances and conduct. The Occupational Health and Safety Act 2025 replaced the 2010 Act. An employer with at least 10 employees must establish a health and safety committee immediately or within 30 days of reaching that number. The committee has equal employer and employee representation, with at least two representatives from each side. Employers provide safe systems, workplaces, access and exits, training, supervision, welfare facilities, emergency arrangements, first aid and personal protective equipment without charging employees. Employees may stop unsafe or imminently dangerous work and report the danger. Retaliation or dismissal for exercising occupational-safety rights is prohibited. The Occupational Health and Safety Institute and authorised officers can inspect workplaces, examine records, take samples and enforce the Act. The Workers’ Compensation Fund Control Board administers workers’ compensation under the Workers’ Compensation Act. Employers fund the assessment and may not deduct it from workers’ pay. Coverage generally includes private and public workers but excludes permanent civil servants, teachers, police and armed forces. Employers report workplace accidents within three days, and claims are generally made within 12 months. Medical aid, temporary payments, disablement pensions and benefits for dependants or survivors may be available. Employees may form or join trade unions. Registration is handled by the Labour Commissioner, and a recognised union may enter recognition agreements and bargain collectively. The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions, Zambia Federation of Employers and Tripartite Labour Consultative Council are part of the wider labour-relations framework. Essential services face special strike and lockout restrictions. A collective dispute usually begins with written claims and a 14-day period without an answer, rejection or successful negotiation, followed by conciliation or the applicable Industrial Relations Court process. Union-registration and anti-fragmentation rules reported in 2026 should be checked against the current statutory instrument before relying on a particular registration threshold. An employer needs a valid reason connected with capacity, conduct or operational requirements to terminate employment. For conduct or performance, the employee receives an opportunity to be heard, and the employer carries the burden of showing a fair and valid reason. Union activity, complaints or proceedings, discrimination, family responsibility, maternity, paternity and temporary sickness or injury are protected grounds. Default notice is 24 hours for employment of one month or less, 14 days for employment above one month and up to three months, and 30 days for employment above three months; written notice applies when employment exceeds six months. Payment in lieu may replace notice, and notice generally cannot run during leave or alongside leave. Summary dismissal is reserved for grounds such as gross misconduct, wilful disobedience, lack of warranted skill, habitual or substantial neglect, continuous unauthorised absence or a disciplinary-code ground. Accrued wages and benefits become payable immediately, and a summary dismissal is reported to a labour officer within four days. Expiry of a fixed-term contract normally needs no notice on the end date, but gratuity may still apply. Severance is generally at least 25% of basic pay for fixed-duration employment, two months of basic pay for each year served in redundancy or death in service, and three months for each completed year in medical discharge. Casual, temporary, long-term-contract and probationary employees are excluded from severance under the stated Employment Code provisions. Redundancy requires at least 30 days’ notice to employees or representatives, consultation and notice to an authorised officer at least 60 days beforehand. The package is generally at least two months of pay for each year served and is due no later than the final duty day. The Labour Commissioner may grant an exemption for proven financial incapacity. The Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Labour Commissioner and provincial or district Labour Offices handle administrative labour pathways. The Industrial Relations Court hears individual and collective employment disputes, while the Occupational Health and Safety Institute, Workers’ Compensation Fund Control Board, NAPSA and trade unions handle specialised matters. A termination complaint generally has to reach the relevant process or court within 30 days of termination. Contract non-compliance, unpaid rights, misconduct, neglect, ill-treatment, personal injury, property damage and discrimination may be reported. The Employment Code allows administrative penalties of up to 200,000 penalty units and orders for compensation or payment. A useful case file includes the contract and attestation, payslips, wage records, rosters, leave and medical certificates, warnings, hearing records, termination or redundancy notices, union documents, collective agreements and accident forms. The law provides the clearest protection where an employment relationship can be proved. Informal work represented about 68.3% of employment in the 2024 ZamStats Labour Force Survey, and access to written contracts, social security and enforcement is often weaker there. Recruitment and immigration rules, including the preference for Zambian citizens and employment permits for expatriates, belong mainly to adjacent employment and immigration processes, although they can affect a labor-law situation.