The Labour Code provides for two types of contracts:

• An open-ended contract (CDI)
• The Fixed-Term Contract (CDD) can only be concluded in the following cases:

• Completion of first established work or new work
• Completion of work requesting huge extra work
• Provisional replacement of a permanent worker who is absent or whose job contract is suspended
• 4. Completion of urgent work to prevent imminent accidents, to carry out rescue operations or to repair defects in the material, equipment or buildings of the company.
• The performance of seasonal work or other activities for which, according to custom or by their nature, an open-ended contract cannot be used 

Children under the age of 16 cannot be employed in activities governed by the Labour Code. For more details visit this link:

Labour Code

Any company can recruit executives of foreign nationality up to 30% of the total number of its executives until the end of the 3rd year from the date of its legal creation or the date of entry into force of the actual activity determined by the company. This proportion must be decreased by 10% the 4th year from the said date. In any case, the company can recruit four foreign executives. Beyond the proportions or limits provided for in the previous paragraph, the company is subject, regarding the recruitment of foreign executives, to an authorization issued by the Ministry of Employment in accordance with the Labour Code provisions.

Ref: Article 6 of the law 2016-71 of September 30, 2016, on the investment law.

The actual working time cannot exceed 48 hours per week. This time can be reduced but not less than 40 hours per week. Art. 79 (new):

The duration of the effective working time may not exceed 48 hours per week or an equivalent limitation established over a period of time other than the week without the duration of this period exceeding one year.

This duration may be reduced to not less than 40 hours per week or an equivalent limitation established over a period of time other than the week and not exceeding one year, by collective agreements or by regulatory texts.

This may be done by collective agreements or by regulatory texts, adopted after consultation with the employers' and workers' trade unions.

Article. 88:

In agricultural enterprises, the legal duration of work is set at a maximum of two thousand seven hundred hours per year for three hundred days of working days.

For non-agricultural activities, overtime is the number of hours exceeding the weekly working time. These hours are remunerated with reference to the basic hourly wage increased according to the following proportions:

• For full-time work schedule of 48 hours per week: 75%.
• For less than 48 hours full-time working schedule, the increase is 25% up to 48 hours and 50% beyond this time.
• For part-time work an increase of 50%. For agricultural activities: the working hours performed upon the employer’ s request and to meet the farm needs, beyond the daily working time, are paid at the normal wage increased by 25%.

Non-agricultural activities: non-agricultural companies are required to give their staff a weekly day off of twenty-four consecutive hours.

Agricultural activities: employers are required to give their permanent or occasional workers a weekly day off of twenty-four consecutive hours except in case of urgent work and in this case compensation is given within the following thirty days.

This day off can be on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It can be given on another day of the week upon agreement of both parties in the company.

The granting of public holidays must not lead to interrupt the company's activities for more than 48 consecutive hours. No-work due to public holidays cannot be a cause of reduction in monthly, fortnightly or weekly wages and salaries. Employees paid by the hour, by the day, by the share, by the task or by the output are entitled to an indemnity equal to the wages which they have lost as a result of this no-working time. This compensation, payable by the employer, is calculated on the basis of the working hours and the weekly working time usually practiced in the company.

Art. 107 (new)

The granting of these days must not result in the company's activity being stopped for more than 48 consecutive hours. The modalities of application of these provisions are fixed by decree of the Minister in charge of Social Affairs taken after consultation of the professional organizations of employers and workers.

Art. 108:

Unemployment in the circumstances provided for in the preceding article shall not be a cause for reduction of monthly, fortnightly or weekly salaries and wages.

Employees who are paid on an hourly, daily, share, task or performance basis are eligible for indemnity equal to the wages they have lost as a result of this unemployment. This indemnity, which is payable by the employer, is calculated on the basis of the working hours and the distribution of the weekly working hours usually practiced in the establishment.

The paid public holidays are fixed by decree or by collective agreements:

Non-agricultural activity: every employee is entitled each year to a paid leave by the employer under the following conditions:

• One effective working day per month
• Two working days per month for employees under the age of 18
• One and a half day per month of work for employees aged 18 to 21.

The leave duration thus fixed is increased by one working day per entire period of five years of service with the same employer, this increase cannot exceed18 working days. Public holidays and work leave due to illness or accident are not included in paid annual leave. For agricultural activities the workers have the right for a leave on condition that they have at least six months of continuous service with the same employer. The leave duration is fixed as follows:

• One working day of leave per effective month since the start of service.
• Two days per month for workers under the age of 18.
• One day and a half per month for workers aged 18 to 20.

Every employer is required to take the necessary and appropriate measures for the protection of workers and the prevention of work risks, in particular:

• Ensure the protection of workers' health in the workplace.
• Guarantee adequate working conditions and environment.
• Protect workers from the risks inherent to machines, equipment and products used.
• Provide adequate collective and individual prevention means and train workers in their use.
• Inform and make workers aware of the risks of the work they practice. In any company employing at least 500 workers, the employer is required to provide an occupational health service specific to this company. Companies employing less than 500 workers are required either to join an occupational health agency or create an independent occupational health service.

A board is created in each company employing at least 40 permanent workers, this structure is called "Company Advisory Board". It is equally composed of:

• Management representatives, including the company’s CEO , who chairs the board meetings
• Workers' representatives elected by them

The Company Advisory Board is consulted for the following points:

• The company’s work organization in order to improve production and productivity
• Questions relating to existing social activities in the company to assist the workers and their families
• Promotion and professional reclassification
• Learning and vocational training
• Discipline and in this case the board sets itself up as a disciplinary committee and applies the procedure set by the legislative, regulatory or contractual texts governing the company

The Company Advisory Board examines questions relating to health and safety at work. To this end, a technical sub-committee called the “occupational health and safety committee” is set up, composed as follows:

• The Company manager or his/her representative, as chairman
• Two workers' representatives chosen by the staff representatives within the Company Advisory Board, as members
• The occupational doctor reporting to the company, as member
• The security officer, as member

The mission of this committee is to:

• Prepare draft regulations and prescriptions relating to occupational health and safety in the company
• Ensure information, awareness and training tasks in the field of health and safety at work
• Propose occupational risk prevention programs within the company and ensure the monitoring and the implementation of the adopted programs.
• Carry out investigations after each work accident or occupational disease and propose the necessary remedial measures

Work inspection is carried out by officials reporting to the Ministry of Social Affairs. Their mission is to:

• Ensure the application of legal, regulatory and contractual provisions organizing labour relations or resulting therefrom
• Provide technical information and advise the employers on the most effective ways to enforce labour laws.
• Bring to the attention of the competent authorities any deficiency or abuse that is not specifically covered by the legal provisions in force.
• Assist the governors in the conciliation mission assigned to them
• Carry out, upon the governors’ request, all inquiries relating to work reports or which may have an impact on the volume of labour force in their governorate.

The role of the industrial courts is to resolve individual disputes that may arise between the contracting parties in the application of employment or training contracts, their jurisdiction extends also to work disputes between employees.

For more details visit this link: Labour Code

Articles from 227 (new) to 240 (new) of the Labor Code

Law 37-2019 of April 30, 2019, provides for one year increase of the retirement age for employees who have reached 60 years from July 1 until December 31, 2019, and by 2 years from January 1, 2020, for employees who will have reached 60 years from that date.

The amount of the SMIG (Minimum Guaranteed Salary) for the 48-hour scheme has been increased to 429.312 dinars. That of the 40-hour scheme went from 323.921 dinars to 365,732 dinars. Regarding the wages of workers paid by the hour for the 48-hour scheme, they will benefit from 2.064 TD for each hour worked. Those in the 40-hour scheme will be entitled to 2.110 TD for each hour worked.

Article 1 of Government Decree No. 2020-1069 of December 30, 2020, setting the guaranteed interprofessional minimum wage in the non-agricultural sectors covered by the Labor Code.

SMIG employees benefit from an allowance increase in application of government decree No. 2015-1764 of November 9, 2015 as follows:

• Transport allowance: 36,112 dinars / month
• Attendance bonus: 2,080 dinars / month