Lao PDR
LABOUR LAW OF
LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC
Decree No.24/PR of the President of the Republic, dated 21 April
1994, promulgating law No.002/NA of 14 March 1994, concerning
labour.
MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE, LAO PDR
In the absence of separate legislation on occupational safety and
health, the relevant Chapters and sections of this Act have been
reproduced.
CHAPTER I: GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1. Purpose
The purpose of this law is to regulate
employment
relationships, to make the best use of workers' abilities to
ensure national, social and economic development, to enhance the
efficiency and productivity of society and to improve workers'
living conditions.
Article 2. Principle of mutual interest of employers
and
workers.
The Government shall ensure that employers and
workers
derive mutual benefits from their relationships without
discrimination on the basis of race, colour, sex, religion,
political opinion or social status. Workers shall respect and
observe work rules and comply with all labour regulations.
Employers shall provide workers with fair wages, safe working
conditions and social protection. Under this law, "worker"
means
a person who works under the supervision of the employer in
exchange for a salary or wage and benefits provided for by law
and regulations and under the employment contract; "employer"
means any individual or corporate body who employs workers and
who must pay them a salary or wage, and other benefits provided
for by law and regulations and under contracts of employment.
Article 5. Scope of
Application.
This law applies to all employers and workers
who carry on
activities in any social and economic sector of the Lao People's
Democratic Republic, hereinafter referred to as "labour units".
CHAPTER IV: HOURS OF WORK AND REST PERIODS
Article 25. Hours of work
The hours of work in a labour unit shall be six
days per
week, but not exceeding eight hours per day or 48 hours per week,
irrespective of the form of salary or wage paid.
Hours of work must not exceed six hours per day
or 36 hours
per week in respect of workers whose occupation involves:
- direct exposure
to radiation or to contagious disease;
- direct exposure
to gas or smoke having an adverse
effect
on health;
- direct exposure
to dangerous chemicals, in particular
to
explosives;
- work in pits, or
in underground tunnels, underwater or
at
heights;
- work in an
abnormally hot or cold environment;
- direct use of
constantly vibrating machinery.
Article 26. Time counted as hours
of work.
In the calculation of daily hours of work,
account shall be
taken of:
- time spent on
preparatory technical operations at the
start
and end of work;
- hourly breaks
not exceeding 15 minutes, in certain
sections in which work is divided into periods or
which
operate on the basis of shifts;
- a 45 minute meal
break per shift in respect of shift
workers.
The employer shall establish a reasonable
production
schedule so as to enable workers to rest at least five to ten
minutes after having worked for two hours. Should a necessity
arise for any technical or mechanical reasons, work by rotation
must be organized so that workers can rest appropriately.
Time counted as hours of work should be
specified in rules
of work of labour units.
Article 28. Weekly rest and
official holidays.
Workers shall have the right to one full day of
weekly rest,
which may be Sunday or any other day agreed upon between the
workers and their employer. Official hoildays shall be
established by the Government.
CHAPTER VI: EMPLOYMENT OF WOMEN AND YOUNG
PERSONS
Article 33. Work prohibited in
respect of women.
An employer shall not employ women to perform
heavy work
dangerous to their health as specified by regulation nor to work
during the night in all industrial sectors from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
the next morning. The rest period for women shall be at least
11 hours before resuming work on the next day.
Article 34. Prohibition of
employment of women during
pregnancy and child care.
An employer shall not employ a woman during her
pregnancy
or during the six months following her confinement to perform any
of the following duties:
- lifitng or
carrying heavy loads;
- work which
entails standing continuously for long
periods.
In such circumstances the employer shall assign
women to
other temporary duties. While performing these temporary duties,
the workers concerned shall continue to receive their normal
salary or wage for a maximum period of three months, after which
they shall be paid the salary or wage corresponding to their new
assignment.
An employer shall not employ pregnant women or
women with
children under 12 months of age to work overtime, or on a day of
weekly rest or at night.
Article 35. Maternity leave before
and after confinement.
Before and after confinement, women workers
shall be
entitled to at least 90 days' maternity leave with normal pay
from their employers or from the social security fund, if
contributions have been fully paid to this fund. Such period of
90-day maternity leave shall include post -maternity leave of at
least 42 days.
In the event of illness resulting from
confinement which is
certified by a physician, the workers concerned shall be allowed
to take a supplementary leave of at least 30 days at 50 per cent
of their normal pay.
During the 12-month period following
confinement, women
workers shall have the right to a daily break of one hour to
nurse or take care of their children if they place their children
in a nursery or bring the children to the workplace.
In the event of miscarriage, entitlement to
leave shall be
determined on the advice of the physician.
Article 37. Employment of persons
under 18 years of age.
An employer may employ young workers between 15
and 18 years
of age provided that they do not work for more than six hours per
day or 36 hours per week. The young workers shall not be
employed to perform arduous work or work which is damaging to
their health; including:
- all mining and
quarrying work;
- work involving
chemicals or explosives and poisonous
substances;
- work involving
the handling of human corpses;
- other work
specified under article 25 of this law;
- work at
night in all branches of industry from 10
p.m.
to 5 a.m. the next morning; this period shall be
included in the 11 hours of rest before resuming work
the
next day.
Employment of young workers under 15 years of age in all socio-
economic sectors is prohibited.
CHAPTER IX: INCOME TAX AND SOCIAL SECURITY
Article 48. Social security
fund.
Each labour unit in the socio-economic sectors
shall
establish a social security fund or pay contributions to a
compensation fund to ensure the living standards of its workers
in accordance with the social security system.
Workers and employers shall contribute to the
social
security fund in accordance with regulations adopted by the
Government.
Where the employer has paid contributions to the
compensation fund and the social security fund, these funds shall
be entirely responsible for providing social security coverage
to his workers.
CHAPTER X: LABOUR PROTECTION
Article 49. Guarantees of safety
and working conditions
The employer shall be responsible for ensuring
that the
workplace, machines, materials and the various stages of
production, including the use of chemicals under its supervision
are safe and not dangerous to the workers' health.
The employer shall be responsible for drawing up
work rules
concerning labour and health protection, including the
implementation of such measures as may be required to ensure
protection in the use of machinery, and the installation of
various safety equipment, in consultation with trade unions or
workers' representatives in its labour unit. Workers shall be
informed about these rules, which shall be visibly posted in an
open place where they can be read by all those concerned.
Necessary measures to ensure safety and
sanitation at the
workplace shall include:
- appropriate
lighting by means of an electrical
installation or natural light, limitation of excessive
noise,
ventilation designed to expel dust and odours
which
are dangerous to health;
- a supply of
drinking water and washing water, showers,
toilets, a cafeteria, and a changing room for workers;
- a storage room
where toxic substances can be kept
safely
without risk of leakage;
- the provision,
free of charge, of such personal
protective equipment and clothing as may be required
by
workers engaged in the production process;
- the installation
of protective equipment or fencing
around
any dangerous machinery or at other places
posing
a risk, and other necessary measures, such as
fire-alarms or protective equipment against electric
shocks.
The employer shall furthermore ensure that
workers acquire
sufficient knowledge of the rules governing the protection of
their own safety and health and should organize training courses
in this respect. All measures relating to protecting workers'
safety and health in each labour unit shall be free of charge to
workers.
Each worker shall diligently and scrupulously
observe such
measures for their own and other colleagues' safety and health,
and must cooperate with the employer in the implementation of
compulsory measures designed to protect the workers' safety and
health.
The employer shall not use narcotics or
substances dangerous
to the health of the workers.
Article 50. Medical examination
and health care for workers
Any labour unit may require from employment
applicants a
medical certificate establishing that they do not suffer from an
occupational disease. Where an applicant has an occupational
disease, the employer may reject his application for employment.
An employer shall request his workers to undergo
a medical
examination at least once a year, particularly those engaged in
arduous work or work which is damaging to their health, within
the meaning of article 25 of this law. Where it is established
that workers have contracted an occupational disease at a
specific workplace, their employer shall be responsible for their
medical treatment in accordance with the regulations in force.
Workers who have contracted a contagious occupational disease
shall be entitled to sick leave and treatment until such time as
they fully recover their health, and they will then be reinstated
in their normal post. All expenses for medical examination and
treatment of occupational disease shall be charged to the
employer.
All labour units shall be equipped with a
first-aid kit.
Units employing 50 or more workers should arrange for medical
staff to attend to the health of their workers.
CHAPTER XI: OCCUPATIONAL INJURY
Article 51. Occupational injury
An occupational injury means an accident which
results in
injury, disability or handicap to a worker or in their consequent
death and which occurs:
- during the
performance of occupational duties at the
workplace or at any other place in accordance with the
instructions of the employer or the person in charge
of
labour management on its behalf;
- in a
recreational area, cafeteria, or any other place
under
the responsibility of the labour unit.
Any form of occupational disease shall be
regarded as an
occupational injury
The labour administration shall cooperate with
the health
administration and trade unions in establishing the types of
occupational diseases.
Injuries sustained by workers during work
performed for
personal purposes without instructions from their employer or his
representative, shall not be considered occupational injuries.
Article 52. Assistance to victims
of occupational injuries.
The employer shall provide a worker who sustains
an
occupational injury with immediate and appropriate assistance.
Moreover, the employer or the social security fund shall bear all
actual costs of medical treatment as established by a medical
certificate such as:
- the cost of
treatment in a hospital or outside a
hospital including the cost of examination and
surgical operation;
- the expenses for
hospitalization or stay at any other
care
establishment;
- the cost of any
care given by a physician or assistant
physician or professional practitioner including the
cost
of traditional medicine.
Where workers die as a result of an occupational
injuries,
their employer shall be responsible for paying for their funeral
expenses amounting to at least six months' salary or wage of the
deceased. In addition, the beneficiaries of the deceased shall
have the right to receive lump sum benefits.
Where workers die while on assignment by the
employer to
another workplace, the cost of transporting their bodies or
remains to their families shall also be met by the employer.
Article 53. Compensation to
victims of occupational injuries
or disease
Compensation to workers who sustain occupational
injuries
or contract occupational diseases shall be as follows.
Throughout the period of medical treatment and
rehabilitation prescribed by a physician, victims of
occupational injuries shall be entitled to receive their regular
salary or wage for up to six months. Where the said period
exceeds six months they shall be entitled to receive only 50 per
cent of their salary or wage for each month thereafter, up to 18
months. After 18 months, benefits under the social security
system shall be granted.
Where workers are disabled or suffer from any
organ
amputation as a result of an occupational injury, or where
workers are disabled because of an occupational disease or die
as a result thereof, the employer shall pay compensation to the
victim or to their heirs in accordance with the regulations in
force.
Where the employer has paid contributions to a
compensation
fund or social security fund as provided for under article 48 of
this law or has secured insurance coverage for his workers from
an insurance company, all the above allowances shall be under the
responsibility of such compensation fund or insurance company in
accordance with applicable regulations.
The International Labour Organization is a United Nations specialized agency.