Employment Regulations
Key Factors to Consider When Employing in Morocco:
The employment relationship is mainly governed by the main employment legislation, the Labour Code and industry-wide collective bargaining agreements (CBAs).
The Labour Code governs specific labour and employment issues, including in particular:
- Conditions of employment and work, employment contracts, termination of employment and dismissal;
- Terms of employment and wages, including minimum wage, minimum age for employment, maternity protection, hours of work and overtime, paid annual and holiday leave, policies for special categories of workers, and occupational safety and health protection;
- Trade union affairs, election and functions of labor representatives;
- Collective bargaining and the settlement of collective labor disputes, including conciliation and arbitration;
- Labour inspections, including the roles and responsibilities of labour inspectors.
Employee Entitlements
Statutory Working Hours
Moroccan employees in an industry, commerce or liberal profession work a maximum of 44 hours per week (2288 annually) while those in the agricultural sector work a maximum of 2496 hours per year. It is compulsory to arrange a weekly rest period of at least 24 hours, from midnight to midnight, on Friday, Saturday, Sunday or, in rural areas, the local weekly-market day. Weekly rest must be granted simultaneously to all the employees working at a single workplace unless approved otherwise by the employment authorities.
Medical Leave
Employees are required to inform employers within 48 hours of any medical-related absences. A medical certificate is required for leave exceeding 4 days. In case an employee is absent for medical reasons (other than for a work-related illness or injury) for more than 180 consecutive days in a 365 day period, his employer can assume he has resigned.
Annual Leave Accrual Entitlement
All employees working for more than six months at the same company or employer is entitled to:
- One day and a half of effective work per month worked;
- Two days of effective work per month worked for employees aged under 18.
Workers are entitled to an extra day and a half for every extra 5 years worked, up to a maximum of 30 days.
Maternity Leave in Morocco
Female employees are entitled to 14 paid weeks off for maternity which may be taken after delivery or in increments of 7 weeks before and 7 weeks after delivery. The employee has the right to take an additional period not to exceed 90 days beginning after the 14 weeks of Maternity leave have passed. A woman may take up to and additional 1 year of unpaid maternity leave, subject to permission of her employer.
Probation Period
Article 14 of the Labour Code states that the maximum probationary periods are as follows:
1. Contracts of indefinite duration:
- 3 months for executives and similar positions
- 1.5 months for white collars
- 15 days for blue collars
Probationary periods may only be extended once.
2. Fixed-term contracts:
- Max. 2 weeks for contracts below 6 months
- Max. 1 month for contracts exceeding 6 months
However, shorter trial periods are permitted if stated in the respective CBA or employment contract.
Unless the employment contract or CBA expressly provides otherwise, the employment contract may be terminated without any restrictions (i.e., without justification or indemnities) during the probationary period. However, employers need to comply with a minimum statutory termination notice period during the probationary period if the probationary period is at least equal to one week (for example, the termination notice will be two days if the employee is paid daily, weekly or fortnightly; or eight days if the employee is paid monthly).
