Employment
Code du travail 2003 with works councils and free-zone labour rules
The Code du travail (Loi 2003-044) governs contracts, working time and dismissal, requiring authorisation from the labour inspectorate for economic dismissals. Export-processing zone employers are subject to the same code, with specific provisions on shift work that were controversial in the textile sector.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — The labour inspectorate conciliates; the Tribunal du Travail adjudicates.
- Deadline — Economic dismissal: prior authorisation from the labour inspector
- Deadline — Notice period: by category and length of service
Governing law
- Loi 2003-044 portant Code du travail
- Loi 94-029 — antecedent labour code provisions retained in part
- Code de prévoyance sociale
In practice
Mandatory administrative authorisation for economic dismissals is the defining feature and a real constraint: an employer cannot lawfully restructure without the inspectorate's agreement, which makes the administrative process, not the courts, the decisive forum.