Montserrat

• New Year's Day
• Saint Patrick's Day
• Good Friday
• Easter Monday
• Labour Day
• Whit Monday
• Emancipation Day
• Christmas Day
• Boxing Day
• Festival Day

Working Hours

The standard working hours are eight hours a day, or 40 hours a week.

Minimum Wage

There is no statutory minimum wage in Montserrat.

Employee Tax

Annual income	Tax rate
Up to EC$ 15,000	0%
More than EC$ 15,000	5% - 40%*
Social security contribution	5.5%

*Rate depends on employee salary.

Bonuses

There are no statutory bonus schemes in Montserrat.

There is no legal requirement for a contract of employment to be in writing. An employment contract can have expressed or implied terms.

If a contract will last three months or more, the employer must issue a written statement; including the details of employment within ten days of the start date. The statement must be signed by the employer, employee, and a witness.

Annual Leave

Minimum of two weeks’ paid holiday for employees with less than ten years of service, rising to three weeks after ten years and four weeks after 20 years.

Sick Leave

After 13 weeks of service, employees are entitled to 24 days of fully paid sickness leave per year. A medical certificate is required to claim sick pay for more than two consecutive days.

Parental Leave

• Maternity leave: at least three months' fully paid leave after 12 months of service.
• Paternity leave: two weeks' paid leave.

Termination Process

Employers can dismiss employees provided they follow the procedures set out in the Labour Code. This includes issuing a:

• Verbal warning
• Written warning
• Demotion

Employers are not entitled to levy fines or other financial penalties on employees.

Employers can also dismiss an employee if two medical practitioners declare they are unable to continue working due to a health impairment that has lasted at least six months.

Severance Pay

Employees are entitled to two weeks’ wages for each year of service between one and five years, rising to 2.5 weeks’ pay after five years, three weeks’ pay after ten years, and 3.5 weeks’ pay after 15 years.

Under a Mauve Group Employer of Record solution, clients and workers can reap the benefits of Mauve’s Global Master Insurance Programme – a market-leading unified corporate insurance programme that connects all Mauve entities to its two preferred providers.

The insurance provides coverage in overseas locations through a combination of the master policy and its linked local policies, where required by law in certain jurisdictions. The policies include:

• Employer’s Liability and Public Liability - £10,000,000 combined limit.
• Professional Indemnity - £5,000,000 limit.
• Worker’s Compensation – Limit is dependent on location of work.

For specific information about statutory and recommended insurances in your chosen country, get in touch with Mauve.