Global HR Compliance in Cameroon

If you hire international workforce, or plan to hire, then Hiring and Firing Workforce in Cameroon Guide below will help you understand the nuances of labor legislation in the country.

There are two main reasons for companies hiring foreign workforce:

• Expanding into foreign markets to sell company product or products there. In this case, companies hire sales representatives who would exclusively represent their product in the target market and sell it to their local client base.
• Hiring the right foreign talent with a unique expertise, often related to IT sphere that cannot be found in the home country or that costs less compared to local specialist with similar skills.

After you have found the right candidate, the question is how to hire and provide compensation to this person so you as a business remain 100% compliant when working with global workforce. Another thing to consider is whether you want to keep the talent long-term and how you can do that.

If you need to hire foreign workforce in Cameroon so you can expand there, then our Global Employer of Record solution may be of help. We help you legally hire and reward your foreign workforce by making them employees via a global employment outsourcing service. This is simple as employ your in-house workforce with the only difference that workers can live anywhere in the world and Acumen International would be their legal employer on your behalf. This means we would bear all employment risks, not you. Also, we manage bonuses, vacations, sick leave and can rent the office and a car for your foreign sales representatives if that is what you need.

With our solution, you can test new foreign markets before deciding whether you are going to get established there. You gain flexibility and expand with reduced costs, and easily withdraw from the unattractive countries.

We are experts in global workforce employment in Cameroon, and our goal is to become your single provider. Instead of working with numerous local staffing agencies and legal advisors, Acumen International can solve your global business challenges and save you time, costs, and resources.

Our team of English-speaking professionals frees you from working through language nuances. Acumen International works 24/7 and can assist you whenever you need, regardless of time zones. Our goal is to create tailored labor solutions for you that are managed legally and in full compliance with the local employment laws.

With our knowledge and deep understanding of local nuances, you easily satisfy your need for skilled professionals in your global industry. With our qualified local partners, you can trust that your global workforce satisfies all local tax, social security, and immigration requirements in Cameroon.

Hiring and Firing Workfroce in Cameroon Guide

# Employment contracts

Under the Cameroon Labor Law, the employment contract can be formal or informal (written or oral). There is no legal requirement that the contract should be concluded in writing, but agreements in writing reduce the opportunities for any confusion and conflict during its execution and in case of a dispute.
Labor agreements are also divided into a period of duration:

• Labor agreements for a certain period of time are an employment contract with a certain or specific period for which a contract is to be concluded. The Cameroon Labor Code defines contracts of a certain duration as contracts, the termination of which is fixed in advance by both parties. The main feature of this employment contract is that it can work only once for 2 years. But there is another variant of the contract of the specified duration, such as a contract concluded for the fulfillment of this task.
• Labor contracts for an indefinite period is a contract, the term of which is not fixed in advance. Most of the contracts in Cameroon are designed for an indefinite period. Usually such contracts should last until the employee retires. However, such contracts can be legally terminated at any time by either party with a notice of termination. A contract of indefinite duration can be terminated only with the prior notification of the party that terminated the contract or for the unlawful conduct of one of the parties.
• Temporary labor agreement, concluded for casual, seasonal and temporary jobs. This may be caused by unforeseen changes in the enterprise / industry and the emergence of the need for emergency workers to prevent unavoidable accidents, urgent repair work, and seasonal workers as a result of the seasonal nature of the company. Temporary agreements can’t be concluded for a period exceeding one day to 15 days, and may be renewed more than once. In those cases when seasonal, temporary and accidental works go beyond their legal term without terminating, they turn into contracts of uncertain duration.

# Minimum (Statutory) Employment Rules and Regulations in Cameroon

# Hours of work:
The legal working week in Cameroon consists of 40 working hours for all sectors, except for agriculture, where the working week is 48 hours.

According to the Labor Code, where an enterprise has an official 5-day workweek, the employee is not allowed to work more than 8 hours a day. Similarly, if an enterprise has a six-day workweek, the worker can only work 6 hours 6 hours a day. In total, the employee is allowed to work only 48 hours a week – 2400 hours per year.

The traditional practice is that an employee has the right to one day of rest for a seven-day work week. Weekly rest is compulsory, i.e., 24 consecutive hours of rest. The rest period is usually on a Sunday and can’t be replaced by a compensation allowance.

# Probation period:
The duration of probation period varies between 15 days and 4 months according to the professional category of the worker. The probationary period cannot exceed 6 months including renewal, except for managerial staff for which it can be extended to 8 months.

# Annual leave:
In general, in Cameroon the employees are eligible to accrue 1 1/2 days of leave for each month of work. After 5 years of service, employees are eligible to receive an additional 2 days per month. The employees who have accumulated more than 12 days of leave may split up their leave, but one portion must equal 12 continuous working days.

In case of family events the employees are also generally eligible to receive 10 days of paid leave.

Mothers with children under 6 years old, are generally eligible for 2 additional days of leave for each child who lives with mother, or 1 day if the mother’s accrued leave does not exceed 6 days.

# Parental leave:
Female employees are generally entitled to 14 weeks of paid maternity leave, with 4 weeks to be taken before the birth or 6 weeks if her doctor orders confinement. Maternity leave is paid for by the National Social Insurance Fund.

Fathers can use their 10 days of paid family leave for paternity leave.

# Sick leave:
The employees are entitled to at least 5 days of paid sick leave per year.

If the employee is injured or becomes ill at work, the employer is responsible for paying for medical treatment.

# Overtime:
Overtime work in Cameroon can take place on a temporary basis for the work required due to an exceptional or seasonal overload of work; The inability to complete work during a fixed delay, and when hiring additional staff is impossible.

The employer may require the employee to perform overtime work if he / she can’t hire additional employees by virtue of:

• qualification and nature of the work performed;
• the organization of jobs in his / her institution.

In the case of urgent work or force majeure circumstances on non-working days, the employer may require overtime due to the regularization by the labor inspector from the first working day after the specified period.

Execution of overtime work performed in accordance with this decree gives the employee compensation as follows:
a) overtime during the day:

• 8 first hours: 20% of the hourly wage;
• after 8 hours: 30% of the hourly wage;
• for the third installment of hours, up to 20 hours per week: 40% of the hourly wage;
• for overtime work performed on Sundays: 40% of the hourly wage.

# State minimum salary:
The Cameroon minimum salary was established in July 30, 2014 in amount of 36,270 CFA francs per month.

# Employee dismissal:
In accordance with Cameroon`s legislation the termination process could be as follows:

• An employment contract can be terminated at the request of any of the parties that reported the termination of the contract, which indicates the reason for the termination of the employment contract.
• Long-term contracts can be terminated only because of gross violations, force majeure or written consent of both parties.

Unlimited contracts can be terminated at any time by either the employer or the employee. Notice of termination must be given, the duration of which is established by the minister responsible for labor, and is based on the seniority and professional group of the employee. During the notification period, the employee usually has the right to one day off per week to look for another job.

The Labor Code prescribes notification periods for a period of 15 to 30 days or one month, depending on the professional status of employees. The notice period can also be agreed by the parties. Notice of termination, which lasts only one day, regardless of whether it is agreed by the parties, is an unauthorized notification.

The terms of the employment contract may provide for the payment of wages instead of notice of termination. The relevant thing is that the employee be paid on the day the termination comes into force. A simple proposal to pay wages instead of a notice on a future date is incompetent, since the payment must be immediate.

An employee who offers to leave his job immediately, may demand payment of an employer’s salary instead of a notice.
Employees who have worked for at least 2 years, as a rule, have the right to an exit fee; The amount of wages is determined by the minister responsible for labor.