Labor law in Mali

The Code du travail covers dependent work performed under an employer's direction. It does not generally exempt smaller companies. It prohibits forced labor and discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, political opinion, national or social origin, disability or HIV status, and supports equal pay for work of equal qualification. International agreements can also affect the employment of foreign workers. A CDI is the normal form of open-ended employment. A CDD must be written, normally lasts no more than two years and may be renewed no more than twice. Continuing work outside the permitted conditions can convert the relationship into a CDI. A CDD lasting more than three months must be deposited with the competent Inspection du Travail before work begins. A CDD should not permanently fill a regular long-term position. A project-based CDD has no maximum duration but cannot be renewed. After an employer dismisses workers for economic reasons, the same eliminated position generally cannot be filled through a CDD for six months, subject to a limited exception of up to three months without renewal. A probation period requires express written agreement, normally follows the applicable notice period and may not exceed six months including renewal. Continuing employment after probation without a new agreement results in a CDI. Apprenticeship, training, internships and qualification contracts have separate rules; a qualification contract lasts from six months to two years. The standard working-time limit is 40 hours per week. Agriculture follows a specific annual limit of 2,352 hours. Night work runs from 21:00 to 05:00. Employees receive at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest, normally on Sunday, although rotation can apply when the organization of the establishment requires it. Annual leave accrues at 2.5 days per month of effective service, or about 30 calendar days per year. Deferral is generally limited to three months, or up to two years on request; at least eight days should be taken during the first year. Overtime limits and supplements depend on the sector, an applicable order or a collective agreement. The officially documented SMIG is 40,000 FCFA per month, or 230.77 FCFA per hour, from 1 January 2016 under Décret n°2015-0363. A newer general SMIG amount was not identified in the reviewed primary sources, so the rate should be checked before it is used for a current calculation. Salary claims, bonuses and allowances generally become time-barred after three years. Lawful deductions include tax, social contributions and deductions authorized by law, contract or collective agreement. An employer may not use a salary deduction as a disciplinary sanction, and payment in kind is restricted. A collective agreement may provide more favorable terms. Employers register every employee with INPS from the start of employment and make the required payments, including the employee share deducted from salary. The listed contribution rates include employer-funded occupational accident and disease coverage of 1% to 4%, retirement contributions totaling 7% with 3.6% from the employee and 3.4% from the employer, employer contributions of 2% for invalidity and survivors, 8% for family benefits, 6.56% for AMO with 3.06% from the employee and 3.50% from the employer, and 1% for ANPE. Employers with more than nine employees generally declare and pay during the first 15 days of each month; smaller employers generally do so during the first 15 days of each quarter. CANAM and INPS participate in administering health insurance coverage. Employers have duties concerning workplace health and safety. They report an occupational accident or disease to the Inspection du Travail within 48 hours. An industrial establishment generally forms a comité d'hygiène et de sécurité from 50 employees, while other establishments generally reach the threshold at 100 employees. The Inspection du Travail can require a committee below the threshold where risks justify it. Pregnancy and maternity protection cover 14 weeks, normally six weeks before and eight weeks after birth, with salary and medical benefits governed by the social protection rules. Dismissal during pregnancy or maternity is prohibited. A non-work-related illness suspends the contract for up to six months and potentially longer until replacement; work accidents and occupational diseases also suspend the contract under the applicable protection rules. The general minimum working age is 15. Light work for children aged 13 or 14 is limited to the list in Arrêté n°2024-2109, and hazardous work is prohibited below 18. Employees may join unions and benefit from collective agreements. Délégués du personnel are generally required from more than 10 employees at an establishment. Their mandate lasts three years. The representation scale ranges from one titular and one substitute for 11 to 25 employees to additional representatives for larger establishments, with one extra pair for each further 500 employees above 1,000. Strikes and lock-outs follow procedural rules. A lawful strike normally does not end the employment contract, except where serious misconduct is established. The Inspection du Travail or a regional Direction du Travail can conciliate labor disputes. An individual dispute normally goes to the Tribunal du Travail at the place where the contract is performed; a dismissal dispute may also allow the employee's place of residence. A collective dispute goes promptly to the regional labor inspector, or to the Directeur du Travail when several regions are involved. A conciliation report is issued within six clear days. A signed settlement confirmed by the inspector is immediately enforceable. If conciliation fails, the matter can proceed to the Minister of Labor and a Conseil d'arbitrage; an award is issued within 15 days and an appeal can generally be filed within eight clear days. An employer ending a CDI gives written notice and states the reason. Unless a more favorable rule applies, the notice period is eight days for daily or weekly pay, one month for monthly pay, two months for intermediate managers or equivalent positions and three months for managers or directors. Failure to respect notice requires payment of the full salary and benefits for the missing period. The employer sends the dismissal notice by registered letter to the Inspection du Travail, which has 15 days to give its opinion. Challenging the reason before the Tribunal du Travail suspends the decision. A procedurally defective but materially justified dismissal can still lead to compensation of up to one gross monthly salary. After at least one year of continuous service, statutory dismissal compensation is calculated using the average salary of the previous 12 months: 20% per year for years one to five, 25% per year for years six to ten and 30% per year from year eleven. A collective agreement or other applicable agreement can improve this amount, while serious misconduct excludes it. Economic dismissal requires consultation with employee representatives, examination of alternatives such as reduced hours, part-time work, technical unemployment or reassignment, objective selection criteria and a meeting within eight days. The employer informs the Inspection du Travail, and affected employees generally have priority for re-employment for two years. Dismissal of a délégué du personnel requires prior authorization from the Inspection du Travail, normally within 15 days or 30 days when expert review is required; a breach can result in nullity and reinstatement. These protections primarily reach formal dependent employment. Mali's labor market also includes extensive informal self-employment and family work, where the Code du travail may not provide the same practical access to contracts, contributions, inspection or labor courts. The responsible formal bodies are the Ministry of Labor, Direction nationale du Travail, regional labor directions and inspections, Tribunal du Travail, INPS and CANAM. Administrative procedures are primarily conducted in French, and regional jurisdiction matters when an Inspection du Travail or regional labor direction handles the case.