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Comoros - Compensation & Benefit Legislation 

CAPITAL

Moroni

 

CLIMATE

Tropical marine. The rainy season is from November to May.

 

LANGUAGES

Arabic and French (Official) and Comoran (a blend of Swahilia and Arabic).

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

French and Muslim Law in a New Consolidated Code.

 

CURRENCY

Comoran Franc (1 USD = 557.400 KMF as of April 15, 2002).

 

COMOROS - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

COMOROS - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

The United States does not have an embassy in Comoros. The ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Comoros.

 

U.S. Embassy at Mauritius

4th Floor, Rogers House

John Kennedy Avenue

Port Louis, Mauritius

Telephone: (230) 202 4400

Fax: (230) 208 9534

E-Mail: usembass@intnet.mu

http://usembassymauritius.mu/

 

Embassy of the Federal and Islamic Republic of the Comoros

420 E. 50th Street

New York NY 10022

Telephone: (212) 972-8010

Fax: (212) 983-4712

 

COMOROS - HOLIDAYS

COMOROS - LEAVE

Annual Leave: Minimum 1 month paid annual leave each year.

 

Maternity Leave: 14 weeks – 100% of pay (paid by social security).

 

COMOROS - MINIMUM AGE

The Labor Code defines the minimum age for employment as 15 years of age.

 

(Section 6.d. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Comoros – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

COMOROS - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

There is no minimum wage.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Comoros – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

COMOROS - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

COMOROS - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The new Constitution provides for the right to unionize, and the Government has not prevented industries from unionizing. Farming on small land holdings, subsistence fishing, and petty commerce make up the daily activity of most of the population. The wage labor force is small, and numbers less than 7,000 including government employees, and less than 2,000 excluding them. Teachers, civil servants, and dockworkers are unionized. Unions are independent of the Government. The new Constitution provides for the right to strike, and the right to strike has been exercised freely by public sector workers.

 

In previous years, government workers, teachers, and hospital workers have held strikes primarily because they were not paid for weeks at a time. There were no reports of strikes on Grande Comore or Moheli during the year; however, teachers held strikes on Anjouan during the year, which resulted in periodic school closures. In August 2000, despite regulations that forbid the removal of judges, Colonel Azali transferred to other duties nine judges who had initiated a strike from mid-June to early-August 2000 that called for judicial reform and regular payment of salaries. There are no laws protecting strikers from retribution, but there were no known instances of retribution.

 

There are no restrictions on unions joining federations or affiliating with international bodies; however, none are known to do so.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

The law protects workers from employer interference in their right to organize and administer their unions. Unions have the right to bargain collectively, and strikes are legal. Wages are set by employers in the small private sector and by the Government, especially the Ministries of Finance and Labor, in the larger public sector. The Labor Code, which is enforced rarely, does not include a system for resolving labor disputes, and it does not prohibit antiunion discrimination by employers.

 

There are no export processing zones.

 

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The new Constitution prohibits forced or compulsory labor, and it generally was not practiced among adults. The Government does not prohibit forced and bonded labor by children, and there were some instances in which it occurred. Some families place their children in the homes of others where they work long hours in exchange for food or shelter. A 2000 UNICEF study found that approximately 15 percent of children worked at jobs for which they were not paid.

 

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

 

The Labor Code defines the minimum age for employment as 15 years of age. The Ministry of Labor has few resources to enforce this provision; however, child labor is not a problem due to the general lack of wage employment opportunities. Children generally help with the work of their families in the subsistence farming and fishing sectors. Population pressure and poverty forced some families to place their children in the homes of others. These children, often as young as 7 years of age, typically worked long hours as domestic servants in exchange for food and shelter.

 

The Government has not ratified International Labor Organization Convention 187 on the worst forms of child labor; however, the Government adheres to its provisions in practice.

 

The law does not prohibit forced or bonded labor by children, and there were some instances in which it occurred.

 

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

There is no minimum wage. In previous years, the Government has paid workers late or failed to pay them at all; however, during the year, government workers were paid more regularly. On Anjouan teachers went on strike several times during the year because they were not being paid, resulting in the closure of the schools. On October 19, an agreement was signed after the teachers were promised back payments on unpaid salaries and official recognition from local officials of their status as teachers.

 

The Labor Code specifies 1 day off per week plus 1 month of paid vacation per year, but the Government has not set a standard workweek.

 

There are no safety or health standards for the minuscule manufacturing sector.

 

Legal foreign workers are protected by law; however, there are no such provisions in the law to protect illegal foreign workers.

 

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

The law does not prohibit trafficking in persons; however, there were no reports that persons were trafficked to, from, or within the country.

 

COMOROS - STANDARD WORKWEEK

The Government has not set a standard workweek. However, the Labor Code specifies 1 day off per week.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Comoros – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)