Employment 2025

RWANDA Law and Practice Contributed by: Aimery de Schoutheete, Valence Rukesha, Chloé Stassart and Isaac Rwapasika, Liedekerke

composed of at least three employees. The electoral committee must be composed of an odd number of members, must comprise male and female employees where possible and must choose among its members the chairperson, the vice-chairperson, and the secre - tary. The electoral committee organises the elections, verifies the process and announces the result of the elections. The employees’ representatives are elected by two colleges – the college of staff and the college of man - agers – each of them having a list of voters. To be able to vote, the voter must: • appear on the list of employees of the company; • not have been deprived of the right to vote; and • have been employed by the enterprise for at least six consecutive months before the elections (this condition does not exist for newly created compa - nies). Candidacies must be submitted to the employer between ten and three days before the elections. Candidates are allowed to campaign during working hours. The employees’ representatives are elected through secret ballots in the premises of the company during working hours. An employee votes by signing or placing a fingerprint on the ballot paper in front of the name of the candidate they vote for and then plac - es their ballot paper in a ballot box and signs in front of their name on the list of voters. Employees cannot vote on behalf of a colleague, even if they are given a power of attorney, except if they vote on behalf of a disabled employee. Where there is no candidate, elections are postponed for a maximum period of seven working days. Once the elections are completed, the electoral com - mittee selects at least three people to help count the votes and then the votes are counted in public. It then makes a statement on the electoral operations and sends it to the employer, with a copy being sent to the District Labour Inspectorate. This statement men - tions at least the name of the company and registered office, the number of all employees, the number of voters, the exact number of votes obtained by each candidate and the names of the elected employees’

representatives. The electoral committee publishes and posts the results of election on the company notice board within two days after the elections. Rectification of Voting Results The electoral committee may nullify the election if it was carried out in violation of the law. In such case, another election takes place within 20 days from the day of annulment. Complaints An employee or a member of a union may lodge a complaint on elections results to the electoral com - mittee within 48 hours after publication of the elec - tions results. The electoral committee must rule within 72 hours. Where the outcome is not satisfactory, the complaint is submitted to the District Labour Inspec - torate within the next three working days, and the Inspectorate must rule within two days of receipt of the complaint. Where it is still not resolved, the com - plaint is submitted to the Minister in charge of labour within five days, who in turn rules within one month. 6.3 Collective Bargaining Agreements A collective bargaining agreement is defined as a written agreement relating to employment conditions or any other mutual interests between employees’ organisations or employees’ representatives where there are no such employees’ organisations on the one hand, and one or more employers or employers’ organisations, on the other hand. They can be entered into for a definite or indefinite period. The employees’ organisations and employers’ organi - sations designate a committee in charge of negotia - tions of the collective bargaining agreements on their behalf. To be valid, a collective bargaining agreement must at least include provisions relating to the following: • conditions of recruitment of an employee and ter - mination of contract; • employee’s right of joining trade unions and free - dom of opinion; • professional categories;

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