Retrenchment in Zimbabwe is governed by Section 12C of the Labour Act, substantially reworked by the Labour Amendment Act 2023.
The minimum package
Section 12C, as amended in 2015, prescribed a minimum retrenchment package of one month's salary for every two years of service.
Note the ratio: it is per two years, not per year. Ten years of service produces five months.
What the 2023 amendment added
The Labour Amendment Act 2023 redefines "retrenchment" and introduces three concepts:
- The minimum retrenchment package
- The enhanced retrenchment package
- Capacity to pay
So the minimum is now explicitly a floor, with a negotiated enhancement contemplated above it — and the employer's capacity to pay is a recognised factor.
The 14-day notice
An employer intending to retrench must give 14 days' written notice to:
- The works council or employment council
- The Retrenchment Board
- The affected employees
The notice must include details of the employees and the reasons.
The negotiation obligation
The employer must consult and negotiate any package better than the minimum.
That is an obligation, not an option. If no negotiation took place, the process is defective.
The notification certificate
The employer must notify the Retrenchment Board of any agreed package or, failing agreement, of payment of the minimum package as provided under the 2024 regulations.
The Board then issues a notification certificate confirming compliance.
Ask whether that certificate was issued. Its absence indicates the process was not completed properly.
Guidance on Zimbabwean retrenchment amounts varies. Alongside the statutory one month per two years, you will find references to two weeks per year as a negotiation benchmark, and to three months per year of service as a Retrenchment Board outcome depending on the organisation's ability to pay.
Given that spread, treat the statutory minimum as the floor and confirm the current position with the Retrenchment Board.