Labor law in Ethiopia

Labour Proclamation No. 1156/2019, also known as the የአሠሪና ሠራተኛ ጉዳይ አዋጅ, is Ethiopia's main national framework for private dependent employment. It replaced the earlier labour proclamations listed in the official legal record. It generally covers work performed under an employer's direction for wages, without a general exemption based on the size of the undertaking. It does not generally cover managerial employees, personal service, independent business or professional work, the Armed Forces, Police, state administration, judges, prosecutors, care and treatment, education and training other than apprenticeship, or employment governed by another special law. The Council of Ministers may exclude certain religious or charitable organisations. An employment relationship normally has an indefinite duration. A written contract identifies the employer and worker, records the agreed terms and carries the parties' signatures. If the agreement is oral, the employer must provide a signed statement of the terms within 15 working days, and the worker has a further 15 working days to object. Fixed-term work and piece work are allowed only in legally recognised situations, such as specified piece work, replacement of another worker, abnormal pressure, urgent repair or disaster response, irregular or seasonal work and a temporary vacancy. A vacancy arrangement is limited to 45 working days, and a fixed-term contract cannot be used for a permanent task. The maximum fixed-term duration is approximately five years. Probation must be agreed in writing, cannot exceed 60 working days and cannot be repeated for the same job with the same employer. Either side may end employment during probation without notice or severance. Employers must pay wages, keep required records, provide a safe workplace and avoid unlawful discrimination. Workers must follow lawful instructions, take reasonable care, protect confidential information and comply with safety requirements. If an employment contract is suspended, the employer must notify the relevant authority within three working days, and the authority must decide within three working days. Suspension cannot continue for more than 90 days under the stated procedure. Statutory minimum standards cannot be waived by contract, although a collective agreement or work rule may improve or organise working conditions. Ethiopia currently has no functioning universal statutory minimum wage for the private sector. Article 55(2) provides for a tripartite Wage Board with stakeholder participation and periodic review, while public-service salaries follow a separate system. Wage intervals follow the law, a collective agreement, a work rule or the contract. Deductions require a legal basis, a collective agreement, a work rule, a court order or the worker's written agreement. Without written worker consent, deductions cannot exceed one-third of the monthly wage. A wage register should show gross and net pay, the calculation, deductions and the worker's signature or access to the relevant record. Normal working time is up to eight hours per day and 48 hours per week. The Ministry may set lower limits for particular sectors or occupations without reducing wages. Weekly distribution or averaging is possible within the statutory average limits. Overtime is limited to situations such as accidents, force majeure, urgent work or replacement in continuous operations. The maximum is four hours per day and 12 hours per week. Overtime is paid at 1.5 times the normal rate from 06:00 to 22:00, 1.75 times from 22:00 to 06:00, twice the normal rate on the weekly rest day and 2.5 times on a public holiday. Workers receive at least 24 uninterrupted hours of weekly rest in every seven-day period, usually on Sunday. After one year of continuous service, annual leave is 16 working days plus one additional day for each further two years of service. A worker with less than one year receives leave proportionally, and unused leave must be paid when employment ends. Marriage or the death of a spouse, descendant, ascendant, brother, sister, uncle or aunt can give rise to three paid working days. Paternity leave is three consecutive paid days. A serious exceptional event can justify up to five unpaid days, no more than twice in a budget year. Sick leave can last up to six months in one year: the first month is paid at 100 percent, the next two months at 50 percent and the final three months are unpaid. Maternity leave totals 120 days, consisting of 30 prenatal and 90 postnatal days. Pregnancy-related medical examinations are protected, and MoLS guidance treats miscarriage within the relevant period as sick leave paid at 100 percent for up to six months. Discrimination is prohibited on grounds including nationality, race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction, social origin, HIV/AIDS and disability. Pregnancy and maternity receive additional protection for four months after confinement. A pregnant worker cannot be assigned night work or overtime and must be transferred if medical evidence shows a workplace hazard. Sexual harassment or violence can support termination without notice and claims for severance or compensation. A young worker is at least 15 and under 18 years old. Employment below age 15 is prohibited, as are hazardous or health-endangering tasks for young workers. Their normal working time is limited to seven hours per day, and they cannot work at night, overtime, on a rest day or on a public holiday. Employers must instruct workers about hazards, appoint safety personnel, operate an occupational safety and health committee where an undertaking has at least 10 workers, provide protective equipment, arrange medical examinations for hazardous work and keep and report records of occupational accidents and diseases. Labour inspectors may enter during working hours without prior notice and may interview workers and examine documents. Employer liability for an occupational injury does not depend on proof of fault. The employer must provide first aid and transport, report the incident and cover medical, hospital, pharmaceutical and prosthetic or orthopaedic costs where the law requires. Benefits can apply to temporary or permanent incapacity and dependants; permanent total disablement has a baseline of five times annual wages. Workers and employers may establish or join associations. An undertaking union generally requires at least 10 workers and at least 10 members, while workers in similar small undertakings may form a general union with at least 10 members. Federations and confederations are also recognised. Collective bargaining and collective agreements can regulate wages, benefits, interpretation, promotion, transfer, training and workforce reduction. Anti-union discrimination and retaliation are prohibited. A strike normally requires prior notice of 10 days, an attempt at amicable settlement and the required union vote, including a simple majority where at least two-thirds of members attend. Safety requirements and statutory exceptions, including the exception in Article 137(2), also apply. Termination must normally be in writing and state the reasons and effective date. Individual notice is one month for service of up to one year, two months for more than one and up to nine years, and three months after more than nine years. Workforce reduction requires two months' notice, and payment in lieu may replace notice where permitted. Individual prior approval by an authority is not generally required. Dismissal cannot lawfully be based on union activity, worker representation, a grievance or court participation, nationality, sex, religion, political opinion, marital status, race, colour, family responsibility, pregnancy, disability or social status. Reinstatement or compensation may follow an unlawful dismissal. For an unfair dismissal, compensation for an indefinite contract is 180 daily wages plus notice pay; for a fixed-term contract it is the remaining wages, subject to a maximum of 180 daily wages. A workforce reduction can arise from economic or operational closure, falling demand or profits, technological change or a change in working methods. The special threshold is at least 10 percent of the workforce or at least five workers in an undertaking with 20 to 50 workers over at least 10 days. The employer must consult the union or worker representatives and apply retention criteria such as skill and productivity. In comparable cases, shorter service and fewer dependants are considered, while legally protected groups receive priority protection. Severance generally requires completed probation and non-eligibility for a pension. It is 30 average daily wages for the first completed year, plus one-third of that amount for each additional year, capped at 12 months' wages; workforce reduction or closure adds 60 daily wages. Additional severance grounds can include serious employer violations, harassment or violence, safety failure, disability, sickness or death after at least five years, and HIV/AIDS. Labour disputes may begin with a conciliator from MoLS, a Regional Labour and Skills Bureau, another appropriate authority or, where available, a Woreda conciliation process. Collective disputes include disagreements about wages, benefits, collective agreements, interpretation, promotion, transfer, training and workforce reduction. If conciliation remains unresolved after 30 working days, the matter may proceed to a Labour Relations Board; the parties may also choose conciliation or arbitration where permitted. Termination and disciplinary disputes generally go to the federal or regional labour division of the courts. A Regional First Instance Court has a target of 60 working days for a decision, and an appeal period is 30 days. Workers and trade unions do not pay court fees in labour cases. General claims usually have a one-year limitation period, reinstatement claims must generally be filed within three months after termination, and wage, overtime and termination-payment claims generally have six-month limitation periods.