Located on the western coast of Africa, Angola is the 7th largest African country. Thanks to its vast mineral and oil reserves, Angola's economy is developing rapidly. As the largest economic sector in Angola is oil, there are many jobs for engineers, geologists, IT technicians, and environmental scientists.

The monthly minimum wage varies based on the industry: Agriculture is 21,454 AOA; Transport, services, & manufacturing is 26,817 AOA; and extractive industry and trade is 32,181 AOA.

The working week is Monday-Friday and the standard maximum working day is 8 hours or up to 44 hours per week. Working hours can often be increased to 9 hours per day if the work requires the employee’s presence.

All employers need to keep complete overtime records, as the maximum number of overtime hours allowed is 2 hours per day, 40 hours per month, or 200 hours per year. If an employee works during a mandated rest day, they need to be paid at 110% of the regular pay and those hours are counted as overtime.

In general, overtime payments are calculated per the size of the company and number of overtime hours performed:

• Large companies: 150% of the pay if under 30 hrs per month, and 175% after 30 hours.
• Medium companies: 130% of the pay if under 30 hrs per month, and 145% after 30 hours.
• Small companies: 120% of the regular pay for any overtime
• Micro companies: 110% of the regular pay for any overtime

Parental Leave

Pregnant employees who have contributed to social security for a minimum of 6 months before their pregnancy will receive at least 12 weeks of paid maternity leave.

The leave commences 4 weeks before the baby is due, and if the birth takes place after the expected due date, the period of leave is extended to last at least 9 weeks after the child’s birth. After this leave ends, the employer can provide the mother with an additional 4 weeks of unpaid leave.

For other parents, Angola provides 1 day of paid leave at the time of the birth of a child. Employees are also entitled to 3 days of leave per month (up to 12 working days per year) to provide urgent care to members of their household.

Sick Leave

Employees can take sick leave and receive their full salary for the first 2 months if working for a medium or large company. From the 3rd month to the 12th month of sick leave, the employer must pay 50% of the salary until the social protection entity kicks in.  

If working for a small company the employee can receive 50% of their salary for 90 days of sick leave.

Paid Leave

There are 13 public holidays in Angola. In the first year of employment at a company, paid leave is accrued at two days for each month of work, with a minimum of 6 days of paid vacation required to be taken in that year. After the first year of employment, workers are entitled to 22 days of fully paid leave each year. Female employees with children under the age of 14 are also entitled to one additional day of leave per child each year.

An employee may also take paid leave for military duties up to 2 days per month, with a maximum of 15 days each year. Additionally, an employee may take unpaid leave for 60 days for the purpose of education or training, and must give their employer 30 days notice.

Process

When an employment contract has been terminated, the employee must be paid for their unused leave within 3 days following the termination of their employment. In the event of a group layoff of more than 5 workers, the employer must notify the provincial offices of the Ministry of Labor to explain the reason for their layoffs.

If less than 5 people are dismissed, the employer must still present their reasoning in writing to the employee’s representative body. They then have 7 days to respond, and their response is passed to the Ministry of Labor who has ten days to stop the layoff from happening. If there is no response, then the layoff is approved.

Notice Period

For general employees, the notice period for termination is 30 days. For senior-level employees and technicians, the notice period is 60 days.

Severance Pay

If the employment contract ends due to redundancy, severance pay is calculated at one month’s salary for the first 5 years of employment at the company, and then half the monthly salary for each year after that.

In Angola, a 13th and 14th salary are mandatory — the 13th salary is for a vacation bonus (paid before an employee goes on vacation) and 14th salary payment is a Christmas bonus.