Employment
A 2022 Labour Code and the end of systemic cotton forced labour
A new Labour Code took effect in 2023, modernising contracts and anti-discrimination rules. The ILO confirmed in 2022 that systemic child and forced labour in the cotton harvest had ended.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Courts hear individual disputes; the Labour Inspectorate supervises and the Federation of Trade Unions operates nationally.
- Deadline — Labour dispute claim to court within three months, or one month for dismissal
- Deadline — Two months' notice for redundancy
Governing law
- Labour Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan2022, in force 2023
- Law on Employment of the Population2020
- ILO Conventions Nos. 29, 105 and 182ratified
In practice
The ILO third-party monitoring conclusion that systemic forced and child labour in the cotton harvest had been eliminated, reached in 2022 after a decade of monitoring, is the most consequential development in Uzbek labour law and led to the lifting of the international Cotton Campaign boycott. The 2022 code introduced express anti-discrimination provisions, regulated remote work, and tightened rules on fixed-term contracts. Standard hours are 40 a week with at least 15 working days of annual leave.