Labor law in Cabo Verde

The Cabo Verde Labor Code generally applies to subordinate work in private, cooperative and mixed enterprises. It can also apply to contracts with a public-law entity when the relationship falls outside the public-service statute. Rural work covered by Frentes de Alta Intensidade de Mão-de-Obra follows special legislation, with the Labor Code applying where that legislation is incomplete. Civil law, general employment placement and employer-management topics belong to adjacent areas unless they directly determine a labor-law right or duty. The Direção Geral do Trabalho, known as DGT, develops labor policy, regulates employment matters, supports collective bargaining and provides conciliation and mediation through the Serviço de Mediação Laboral. The Inspeção Geral do Trabalho, known as IGT, inspects workplaces and enforces labor rules nationwide. Competent courts decide judicial labor claims. The Instituto Nacional de Previdência Social, known as INPS, is relevant where employment duties involve social-security registration or contributions, while the exact contribution rules depend on the applicable social-security framework. An employment contract usually does not require a special form. A worker can request a written contract showing the parties, hiring date, workplace, job category and remuneration. The fixed term, a suspensive condition, a non-compete clause and any probation period that differs from the normal rule should be written down; an unwritten deviating probation clause has no effect. The minimum employment age is 15. A contract with a person below 18 can be challenged when the required guardian consent is absent. The normal probation period is two months and can reach six months for complex or responsible functions. Fixed-term contracts require a statutory temporary reason and may last up to five years including renewals. Telework follows the special regime in Decreto-Legislativo 11/2018 and requires a written agreement while preserving equal employment rights and duties. Temporary agency work is also subject to a special regime. Normal working time may not exceed eight hours per day and 44 hours per week. Including overtime, the average may not exceed 48 hours per week over the applicable reference period. A worker normally receives an interval of at least one hour after no more than five consecutive working hours and a weekly rest period of 24 hours, usually on Sunday. Night work runs from 22:00 to 06:00 and carries a supplement of at least 25 percent. Overtime carries a supplement of at least 50 percent, while work on Sundays or public holidays carries a supplement of at least 100 percent. Annual leave is generally 22 working days per year. A fixed-term contract lasting less than one year gives rise to proportional leave. A worker with an indefinite contract normally takes the first annual leave after six months. By agreement and under conditions involving serious prejudice, leave may be accumulated up to 44 working days. For 2026, the minimum monthly wage recorded for the private sector is CVE 17,000 and the public-sector figure is CVE 19,000. A target of CVE 25,000 from 2027 is set out in Lei 69/X/2025 and Resolução 4/2026. A payslip should identify the worker, social-security number, job category, pay period, basic and other pay, deductions and net pay. The reviewed rules do not establish a general statutory right to a thirteenth-month payment, so an entitlement should be checked in the contract, collective agreement or applicable practice. Employers must respect equality and non-discrimination in access to work, employment conditions, pay, suspension and termination. Forced labor is prohibited, and child-labor restrictions apply. Employers also have duties concerning safety, health, hygiene and occupational medicine. Hiring a worker with a disability may qualify the employer for an annual tax incentive. Dismissal of a pregnant, puerperal or breastfeeding worker is presumed to lack just cause unless the employer proves otherwise. Current rules provide 90 days of maternity leave for the mother, 10 mandatory working days of paternity leave immediately after birth for the father and two hours per day for breastfeeding during the first six months. Workers may organize through unions, elect union delegates and rely on collective agreements. Union leadership receives a credit of two paid working days per month. A strike is decided by a union or, where there is no union representation, by a workers' assembly convened by 20 percent of the workers and approved by an absolute majority with the required quorum. Written notice must be sent to the employer and DGT at least five working days before the strike, or seven working days in specified cases. An employer may not discriminate against a worker for joining or not joining a union. Employment can end by mutual agreement, expiry of a fixed term, collective dismissal, individual dismissal for just cause or worker resignation. Collective dismissal covers at least two workers when activity is reduced or the undertaking closes definitively. Under the 2016 objective-dismissal regime, the employer gives at least 35 days' notice of the intention, the worker has seven working days to respond and the final notice is at least 25 days. Objective or collective dismissal compensation is at least 20 days of remuneration for each completed service year. An unlawful dismissal can lead to reinstatement or, where the employer prevents reinstatement, compensation of 40 days of base remuneration for each completed year or fraction. A worker who resigns generally gives 15 days' notice per service year, up to two months. Abandonment is presumed after 10 consecutive working days of absence without notice. Disciplinary sanctions include a written warning, a fine of up to 10 days of base remuneration, suspension with loss of pay and dismissal for just cause. The employer's disciplinary action normally becomes time-barred 35 days after the employer learns of the alleged offence. The offence itself generally prescribes one year after it occurred, unless a longer criminal limitation period applies. The worker must receive an opportunity to defend themselves and present evidence, and the decision must state written reasons. A worker may request DGT intervention within 15 days after notification of a suspension or dismissal decision and may also bring a court action. Labor credits generally prescribe five years after termination. Vacation and overtime credits generally prescribe three years from the date they became due. Claims concerning unlawful dismissal generally have a one-year period from dismissal, while a request for judicial suspension of dismissal must normally be made within 15 days of notification. DGT conciliation and mediation are available for individual and collective disputes, and reviewed official information states that DGT filing has no fee. Court costs were not verified in the available rules. The current framework includes Lei 32/X/2023 on maternity, paternity and breastfeeding protection. Acórdão 121/2024 declared Article 15 of Decreto-Legislativo 5/2007 unconstitutional, so transitional effects on prescription and time limits require case-specific legal review.