Paid Vacation / Annual Leave
What is the relevant legislation on annual leave?
The legislation governing annual leave entitlements or paid vacations in Liberia is the Decent Work Act 2015.
Is a legal annual vacation period provided under the law? (general duration; working days or calendar days)
According to the Decent Work Act, 2015, employees are entitled to annual leave. The entitlement is based on continuous service:
- 1 week during the first 12 months of service
- 2 weeks during the first 24 months (after 12 months of service, leave to be taken during the second year of employment)
- 3 weeks for 36 months (after 24 months of service, leave to be taken during the third year of employment)
- 4 weeks for 60 months of service and beyond (a worker with 5 years or more of service)
Weekly rest days and public holidays are not part of annual leave.
Does annual leave increase with the length of service with an employer?
Annual leave increases with the employee’s length of continuous service with the same employer, scaling from 1 to 4 weeks depending on the number of years worked.
What are the annual leave provisions for child workers and young/adolescent workers?
Child workers are granted an additional week of annual leave on top of the standard entitlement. Like with adult workers, public holidays and weekly rest days are not included in this leave.
What is the qualifying period for annual leave?
The minimum qualifying period for annual leave is 12 months of continuous service with the same employer.
Are workers paid their usual salaries during the term of annual leave? Or are they paid some additional leave allowance? What percentage of their normal salary are workers paid during their vacation term?
Remuneration depends on the employee’s pay structure. Time-rate employees receive their usual earnings, while those with varying hours or other payment methods are compensated based on an average of their earnings from the preceding year. Employees taking at least seven days of leave must be paid in advance.
Can annual leave be accumulated/carried forward? What are the regulations on scheduling and splitting of annual leave? What is the minimum duration of annual leave?
Annual leave may accumulate for up to three years, but not beyond. Leaves can be scheduled and should be taken in a single continuous period. If the employee is entitled to more than one week of leave, it may be split into two parts, provided that each part is at least one week long.
Can a worker receive payment in lieu of annual leave? In what circumstances is it allowed?
Payment in lieu of annual leave is allowed only in case of termination of employment, where any unused leave is paid out at the employee’s current pay. However, there is no entitlement to payment for unused annual leave if the employee continues working with the employer.
Sources: §18.1, 18.2, 18.3 and 21.5 of the Decent Work Act, 2015
Pay on Public Holidays
Which public holidays are provided under the law? How many public holidays are there?
Liberia observes 11 public holidays each year under the Patriotic Observances Law.
- New Year's Day (January 1);
- Armed Forces Day (February 11);
- Decoration Day (2nd Wednesday of March);
- J.J. Roberts' Birthday (March 15);
- Fast and Prayer Day (2nd Friday of April);
- Unification Day (May 14);
- Independence Day (July 26);
- Flag Day (August 24);
- Thanksgiving Day (1st Thursday of November);
- President Tubman's Birthday (November 29);
- Christmas Day (December 25).
The employer must not compel an employee to work on a public holiday.
Are the public holidays paid? Does the law require that workers be paid their wages on public holidays?
Employees who work on a public holiday must be paid twice the normal rate. However, an employer and employee may agree in writing to substitute extra pay with additional paid time off, ensuring the employee still receives their regular wage for the time off.
Sources: §17 and 18 of the Decent Work Act, 2015 and https://www.liberianembassyjp.org/img/holidays.pdf
Weekly Rest Days
How many hours of weekly rest are provided under the law? (day/hours)
Employers must provide employees with:
- daily rest period of at least twelve consecutive hours between the end of one work shift and the start of the next and
- a weekly rest period of at least 36 consecutive hours, which, unless agreed otherwise in writing, should include Sunday.
An employee is entitled to a paid rest break (meal interval) of at least one continuous hour for continuous work of more than five hours.
Does the law make it mandatory to have a weekly rest day?
The legislation requires employers to provide employees with a weekly rest day.
Sources: §17.7, 17.9, 17.10 and 18.1 of the Decent Work Act, 2015
