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Zambia - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Lusaka

 

CLIMATE

Tropical climate; modified by altitude with a rainy season from October to April.

 

LANGUAGES

English (official), major vernaculars - Bemba, Kaonda, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga, and about 70 other indigenous languages.

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

Zambia’s legal system is based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in an ad hoc constitutional council. Zambia has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction.

 

CURRENCY

Zambian Kwacha (1 USD = 4,575.00 ZMK as of June 1, 2002).

 

ZAMBIA - COST-OF-LIVING

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

 

ZAMBIA - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U.S. Embassy at Lusaka

Corner of Independence and United Nations Avenues

P.O. Box 31617

Lusaka, Zambia

Telephone: [260] (1) 250-955

Fax: [260] (1) 252-225

Email: usembass@zamnet.zm

http://www.usemb.org.zm/

 

Embassy of the Republic of Zimbabwe at Washington D.C.

2419 Massachusetts Avenue, NW.

Washington D.C. 20008

Telephone: (202) 265-9717

Fax: (202) 332-0826

 

ZAMBIA - HOLIDAYS

 

ZAMBIA - LEAVE

Annual Leave: The law requires 2 days of annual leave per month of service.

 

Maternity Leave: 12 weeks – 100% of pay (paid by employer).

 

ZAMBIA - MINIMUM AGE

The legal minimum age for employment of children is 16 years.

 

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

 

ZAMBIA - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

The minimum wage for nonunionized workers is set at 245 kwacha per hour ($0.07). Based on a 48-hour workweek, the legal maximum for nonunionized workers, a worker earning the minimum wage would receive 47,000 kwacha per month ($12.70). The minimum wage covers nonunionized workers in categories such as general workers, cleaners, office orderlies, and watchmen.

 

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

 

ZAMBIA - REMUNERATION

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

 

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

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The Constitution provides for the right of citizens to form trade unions, and approximately 60 percent of the 300,000 formal sector workers are unionized. Of the country's 19 large national unions, organized by industry or profession, 18 are affiliated with the Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU). The ZCTU is operated democratically and, like its constituent unions, is independent of any political party and the Government. The Zambia Union of Financial and Allied Workers broke away from the ZCTU with four other unions in 1994 to establish a rival umbrella organization. The Primary Teachers Union of Zambia later joined this group. Four of the founding unions, including the Mineworkers' Union of Zambia, since have rejoined the ZCTU, leaving only the Zambia Union of Financial and Allied Workers and the Primary Teachers Union of Zambia outside the Congress.

 

The law codifies the "one union, one industry" principle and allows for a multiplicity of trade unions as well as federations of trade unions. The Bankers Union of Zambia, although registered with the Government in 1993, was unable to operate because the employers recognize the existing Zambia Union of Financial and Allied Workers. The Secondary School Teachers Union of Zambia (SSTUZ) and the Zambia National Teachers Union (ZNUT) continued to operate; however, most teachers still belong to the ZNUT. The ZNUT lost bargaining power when some members switched to separate unions for primary and secondary school teachers; however, these unions experienced difficulty gaining attention from the Government. Unions continued to experience increasing fragmentation due to a shrinking formal sector and 1993 changes in labor laws that decreased union leverage. Only 11 percent of the eligible workforce was employed in the formal sector.

 

All workers have the right to strike, except those engaged in essential services. In addition to the Zambia Defense Force, the judiciary, the police, the prison service, and the Intelligence Security Service, the law defines as essential services power, medical, water, sewerage, fire fighting, and certain mining occupations essential to safety. It permits strikes only after all other legal recourse has been exhausted. The result is that there has not been a legal strike since 1993. The law prohibits employers from retribution against employees engaged in legal union activities. Workers engaged in illegal strikes do not enjoy this protection.

 

In February the Magistrates and Judges Association of Zambia went on strike until their salaries and conditions of service were improved. Also in February, nurses started a strike that lasted for several months. In April and June, civil servants, city/town/district council workers, public service workers, and teachers went on strike. The workers were striking for increased salaries and improved conditions of service. The strikes were settled when workers were awarded nominal salary increases. No action was taken against the workers engaged in these strikes.

 

The 2000 strike involving resident doctors was resolved, and most resident doctors returned to work with increased salaries and better working conditions (see Section 2.d.).

 

The ZCTU came under criticism for opposing the presidential third-term amendment; however, no action was taken against ZCTU leaders or members.

 

By a majority vote of its members, a union may decide on affiliation with the ZCTU or with trade unions or organizations outside the country. The ZCTU is a member of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, and a citizen currently holds the presidency of that body. Labor leaders travel without restrictions to international conferences and to visit counterparts abroad.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

Employers and unions in each industry negotiate collective bargaining agreements through joint councils in which there is no government involvement. Civil servants and teachers, as public officials, negotiate directly with the Government. Collective disputes are referred first to conciliation. If conciliation fails to resolve the dispute, the parties may refer the case to the Industrial Relations Court (IRC), or, in the case of employees, vote to strike. In practice the industry joint councils function effectively as collective bargaining units.

 

The law prohibits discrimination by employers against union members and organizers. An employee who believes that he has been penalized for union activities may, after exhausting any existing administrative channels for relief, file a complaint with the IRC. This court has the power to order appropriate redress for the aggrieved worker. The complainant may appeal a judgment of the IRC to the Supreme Court. In practice the IRC often orders employers to reinstate workers found to have been victims of discrimination. The IRC, like other courts, has inadequate resources to address all cases before it in a timely manner.

 

There are no export processing zones.

 

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The Constitution prohibits forced or compulsory labor; however, it authorizes the Government to call upon citizens to perform labor in specific instances, for example, during national emergencies or disasters. The Government also can require citizens to perform labor that is associated with traditional civil or communal obligations, as when all members of a village are called upon to assist in preparing for a visit by a traditional leader or other dignitary.

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and in practice the labor authorities enforce the legal proscriptions when cases violating the law are brought to their attention (see Section 6.d.). However, there were reports that UNITA rebels abducted persons, particularly young persons, for forced labor in Angola (see Sections 5, 6.d., and 6.f.).

 

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

 

The legal minimum age for employment of children is 16 years. The Labor Commissioner effectively enforced this law in the industrial sector, where, because of high adult unemployment, there is little demand for child labor. Child labor is most concentrated in the hotel and catering industries, construction, farming, transportation, prostitution, and household work. The law was not enforced for those who work in subsistence agriculture, domestic service, and informal sectors, where children under the age of 16 often are employed. Acute family poverty levels and economic factors contribute to child labor. The problem has been compounded by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, which has produced a growing number of orphans. In urban areas, children commonly engage in street vending. The International Labor Organization (ILO) estimated that approximately 564,000 children were in the work force during the year. Approximately 85 percent of those children are engaged in the worst forms of child labor, including street begging and prostitution. The Government has signed but not ratified ILO Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labor.

 

In 2000 the Government established an interministerial working group, the National Steering Committee of the National Country Program on Child Labor, to coordinate efforts at addressing the root causes of child labor.

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and the authorities enforced legal proscriptions when violations were brought to their attention; however, while in general forced or bonded labor was not a problem, there were reports that UNITA rebels abducted young persons for labor in Angola (see Sections 5 and 6.f.).

 

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

The minimum wage for nonunionized workers is set at $0.07 (245 kwacha) per hour. Based on a 48-hour workweek, the legal maximum for nonunionized workers, a worker earning the minimum wage would receive $12.70 (47,000 kwacha) per month. The minimum wage covers nonunionized workers in categories such as general workers, cleaners, office orderlies, and watchmen. The minimum wage is insufficient to provide a worker and family with a decent standard of living, and most minimum wage earners supplement their incomes through second jobs, subsistence farming, or reliance on the extended family.

 

With respect to unionized workers, wage scales and maximum workweek limits are established through collective bargaining. In practice almost all unionized workers receive salaries considerably higher than the nonunionized minimum wage. The minimum workweek for full-time employment is 40 hours and is, in practice, the normal workweek. The law requires 2 days of annual leave per month of service.

 

The law also regulates minimum health standards in industry, and the Department of Mines is responsible for enforcement. Factory safety is handled by the Inspector of Factories under the Minister of Labor, but staffing problems limited enforcement effectiveness. There are provisions in the law to protect the right of workers to remove themselves from work situations that endanger health or safety without jeopardy to their continued employment.

 

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

The Constitution prohibits trafficking of children under the age of 18, as well as trafficking in women for immoral activities; however, there are no other laws prohibiting trafficking in persons. There were some reports of trafficking of Zambian women to South Africa.

 

Angolan Government forces and UNITA deserters abducted citizens and forced them to accompany them back to Angola, where the abductees were forced to herd cattle, carry logistical supplies, and engage in prostitution.

 

When incidents have been alleged, the Government has investigated them and, in one case, tried an accused trafficker who was acquitted.

 

ZAMBIA - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

 

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

 

ZAMBIA - STANDARD WORKWEEK

The minimum workweek for full-time employment is 40 hours and is, in practice, the normal workweek.

 

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