A dispute arising from an employment contract

A worker is told by telephone that there is “no need to come in tomorrow.” A restaurant owner finds that a member of staff has walked out in the middle of the season. A driver in a transport company has gone two months without pay. Each of them starts with a different question, yet under Labour Law No. 37 of 2015 — published in the Official Gazette, issue 4386, on 9/11/2015, and in force ninety days after publication — the file moves through the same stops. The office of lawyer Ali Barakat in Baghdad, al-Yarmouk, arranges those stops as successive questions, and points each question to its own topic page. This field is distinct from official discipline of a State employee and from civil-service retirement.

Question 1: does the Labour Law apply to this relationship?

Inside Iraq, the Law covers every worker, and anyone treated as a worker, unless a provision takes that person out of its reach. Officials of the State who were appointed under the civil-service statute, or under a special provision, sit outside it, as do members of the armed forces, the police and internal security (art. 3). A dispute about a State official’s service therefore follows official discipline or the administrative courts, not the Court of Labor (محكمة العمل).

Article 1 describes a worker as a natural person — a man or a woman — who performs work under the employer’s direction, supervision and control, whether the contract was put in writing or agreed by speech, whether it was stated or merely implied, and whether the person is in training or on probation, so long as pay of some kind is given in return. The same article describes an employer as a person, natural or corporate, who takes on at least one such worker and pays them. What matters is the true character of the relationship, not the title on a paper. That question is taken further in who counts as a worker.

Question 2: what does the contract actually record?

• Form. The parties may conclude the contract by speech or on paper. When it is put on paper, the employer prepares three signed copies: one stays with the employer, one with the worker, and one is lodged at the Department of Employment and Loans (دائرة التشغيل والقروض). Where nothing was written, each side must prove that a contract exists and what its terms were (art. 37).
• Minimum contents. Article 37 also lists the minimum particulars: who the employer is, what the project is and where it sits; who the worker is; what the work is, how long it lasts and when it starts; what is paid, including benefits, and when, how and where payment is made; and the length of the working day and how that day is split.
• Probation. The first stretch may be a trial of no more than three months, and only once with the same employer. If the employer ends the contract during that trial because the worker is not fit for the work, notice of at least seven days must be given (art. 37).
• Duration. A contract with a stated term is used for a particular task, or for a defined service that will finish on a date that is known or can be expected, and that term may not run past one year. Work that is continuous may be given a stated term only when extra staff are needed for a defined period and a defined task. Someone hired on a stated term enjoys the rights of a permanent worker. If that contract is rolled over more than once, it becomes open-ended (art. 38). The distinction is set out in fixed-term and open-ended contracts.

Question 3: how did the relationship end, and on what ground?

The Law lists the grounds on which a contract ends (art. 43). Some of them happen without a decision by either side: death of the worker; a final prison sentence longer than a year; death of the employer where that person’s identity was material to the contract; winding-up of the project; force majeure; or the stated term running out, or the agreed work being finished. Some rest on the parties’ will: a written agreement to part, or the worker’s resignation with notice of at least thirty days. Some the employer may rely on, including an illness that keeps the worker off work for six months without recovery, confirmed by an official medical certificate, disability that reaches the proportion the text sets, and reaching retirement age, in which last case the end-of-service entitlement under the social-security statute is due. When the employer relies on one of those grounds, written notice of not less than thirty days must be given; if it is not given, a payment in lieu is due (art. 44).

The end-of-service gratuity. A worker whose service has ended is owed a gratuity equal to a fortnight’s pay for every year spent with that employer, except in the situations article 45 takes out by referring to paragraphs of article 43.

The detail is in ending an employment contract, end-of-service entitlements, and resignation.

Question 4: is the challenge window still open?

This is often the question that decides the file. A worker whose service has been ended may object within thirty days of receiving notice of that ending, either before the Service-Termination Committee or before the labour courts. Missing that window is treated as a waiver. Taking one of the two routes closes the other. A decision of the committee may itself be taken to the Court of Labor within thirty days of notification. The employer has to prove the ending (art. 46).

If the worker succeeds. Where the ending is found not to rest on a ground listed in article 43, the worker goes back to the job and receives the full wage for the time away. If going back is not possible, the contract ends from the date of the decision, and the compensation then due is twice the end-of-service gratuity (art. 47).

Question 5: where is the dispute taken?

The Department of Employment and Loans, if a party so chooses. Where a dispute concerns existing rights consisting in the application of the Labour Law, of other statutes on labour and workers, of a collective agreement in force, or of an arbitral decision, either party may refer it to the department, whether the dispute is individual or collective and the agreement contains no mechanism for resolving it. The department decides within fourteen days of receiving written notice, and its decision binds the parties. If no resolution is reached, or a party is not satisfied with the decision, either may resort to the Court of Labor, which is to decide that dispute within thirty days of the complaint being filed (art. 157). The path is explained in referring a labour dispute to the department before court.

The Court of Labor. Each governorate has at least one such court. A judge is nominated for it by the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, on a proposal from the head of the Court of Appeal (art. 165). Its jurisdiction covers civil and criminal matters arising under the Labour Law, under the workers’ social-security statute, and under other legislation, together with interim orders in those matters. Where no labour court has been formed, the Court of First Instance hears those applications. Other statutes may also assign cases to it. A worker who brings a claim, or the union organisation acting for the worker, does not pay court charges at any stage, and these cases are heard on an expedited footing (art. 166).

Challenge. A Court of Labor judgment may be challenged by objection to a judgment in absentia within ten days, by cassation within thirty days beginning the day after service, and by retrial (art. 168). Cassation is heard by the three-member Labour Cases Panel of the Federal Court of Cassation (محكمة التمييز الاتحادية), formed by a decision of the Supreme Judicial Council (art. 167). Article 157 describes the court’s decision, in a dispute referred from the department, as final. The two texts are read together, according to the kind of decision in each file. See the Federal Court of Cassation and the Labour Cases Panel.

Situations that come up beside those five questions

The governorates and the Kurdistan Region

The rules above are the federal rules in the governorates not organized in a region. The Kurdistan Region has questions of its own, set out in which labour rules apply in the governorates and in the Region. Labour courts in the governorates are described on their own pages, including Basrah and Dhi Qar. Those pages are general legal information about those governorates; they do not mean that the office has a branch outside Baghdad.

Social-security enrolment runs alongside the dispute

Enrolment of a worker in social security follows Workers' Retirement and Social Security Law No. 18 of 2023. The employer’s duties under that Law are in the employer’s social-security duties.

How the office starts a file

At the first meeting the office asks for what answers the five questions: the contract or other proof of the relationship, wage slips or transfers, the ending paper or message and the date it was received, and any earlier complaint to the department. The first calculation is the time still left, because thirty days pass quickly. If the caller is the employer, the office starts from the other side: is the ground one of those listed in article 43, was written notice given where the Law requires it, and is there proof of both, because the burden of proof falls on the employer when the ending is challenged (art. 46). The office can be reached on +964 770 848 7526.

Legal basis and sources

1. Labour Law No. 37 of 2015 (Official Gazette, issue 4386 of 9/11/2015, in force ninety days after publication)
2. Law No. 18 of 2023 on workers’ pensions and social security

Frequently asked questions

Topics in this area

• 01End-of-service entitlements under Labour Law No. 37 of 2015The end-of-service gratuity under Labour Law 37/2015: the two-week formula, the statutory exceptions, and how it differs from benefits under Law 18/2023.
• 02Which labour and social-security rules apply in the governorates and in the Kurdistan Region?The reach of Labour Law 37/2015 and Law 18/2023 in the governorates not organised in a region, and how work is organised in the Kurdistan Region.
• 03What is reviewed in the employment contract, a non-Iraqi's work permit, and social-security enrolment?What is reviewed in an employment file: the written contract, a non-Iraqi's work permit, and social-security enrolment,.
• 04When a job ends in Iraq: who ends it, on what ground, and what followsA practical map of ending a private-sector employment contract in Iraq: what ends it automatically, when the employer or the worker may end it, barred grounds, and the challenge deadline.
• 05What does the Labour Law require of workplace internal rules? A statutory readingWhat Labour Law 37/2015 requires of workplace internal rules: the content in article 136, and posting under article 107, not the filing steps.
• 06Labour rules for oil, construction and logistics companies in BasrahLabour Law 37/2015 and Law 18/2023 for oil, construction and logistics companies in Basrah: information from the Baghdad office, with no branch.
• 07The Court of Labor in Basrah, termination of the contract, and the end-of-service gratuityThe Court of Labor in Basrah and disputes over termination and the end-of-service gratuity under Law 37/2015, from Baghdad, with no branch.
• 08An employer’s duties to staff in Iraq, arranged by when they fall dueA timeline of the private-sector employer’s legal duties in Iraq: before hiring, on every payday, every working day, every year, and when the job ends, with the articles behind each.
• 09Where is an employment contract registered in the Kurdistan Region?Registering an employment contract in the Kurdistan Region before the Region's labour departments, not the federal Department of Employment and Loans.
• 10Employer registration on the Kurdistan Region labour portalEmployer registration on the Kurdistan Region labour portal before the Region's labour departments, not mixed with the federal ministry's path.
• 11Where is a labour claim filed in Nasiriyah and Dhi Qar?Where a labour claim is filed in Nasiriyah and Dhi Qar: the Court of Labor in the governorate under Law 37/2015, from Baghdad, with no branch.
• 12Labour Law No. 37 of 2015: its chapters and the questions they raiseAn educational reading of the chapters of Labour Law No. 37 of 2015: the contract, wages, termination and the courts, not an article-by-article text.
• 13The role of the Federal Court of Cassation and the Labour Cases Panel in labour disputesCassation of a Court of Labor judgment before the Labour Cases Panel of the Federal Court of Cassation, under articles 167 and 168 of Law 37/2015.
• 14Clearance and a release between the worker and the employerThe clearance document at the end of the contract under article 41, and limits on waiving statutory rights under articles 14 and 61; not a tax clearance.
• 15From a request letter to a registered agreement: collective bargaining in Iraq, step by stepHow collective bargaining runs under Iraq’s Labour Law: who may bargain, when an employer must come to the table, the 7-, 14- and 30-day clocks, what the agreement may cover, registration and ending.
• 16When wages arrive late: the calendar the Labour Law sets and the path to recover themThe calendar for paying wages under articles 53 and 60 of Labour Law No. 37 of 2015, the rule that a waiver of wages due is void, and how a wage claim moves to the department and the Court of Labor.
• 17Fixed-term and open-ended employment contractsFixed-term and open-ended contracts under articles 37–42 of Labour Law 37/2015: the one-year limit, renewal more than once, and equal rights.
• 18“Stay late tonight” and “put off your leave”: the limits on what an employer can askWhen an employer in Iraq may ask for extra hours, up to what ceiling and at what rate of pay; how much annual and sick leave a worker has; who sets the dates; and why leave cannot be sold.
• 19The employer's duties toward a foreign worker's residenceThe employer's duties as to a non-Iraqi's residence under Residence Law No. 76 of 2017, including notice within 48 hours; not the work-permit path.
• 20Before you apply to hire a non-Iraqi: a fitness test and the duties that follow a permitA practical test for an employer before applying to hire a non-Iraqi: the prohibition in the Labour Law, the conditions in Instructions No. 1 of 2026 including the fifty-per-cent ceiling, and the duties that remain after a permit is issued.
• 21How is a labour dispute taken to the Department before the Court of Labor?Referring a labour dispute to the Department of Employment and Loans and then to the Court of Labor, reading articles 157 and 168 of Law 37/2015 together.
• 22Labour inspection and the powers of the inspection committeePowers of labour inspection committees under articles 126–133 of Labour Law 37/2015: unannounced entry, records, and sampling.
• 23The violation report and the employer’s position before inspectionThe inspection visit report, the remedy period, the Minister’s warning, and referral of the employer to the Court of Labor under articles 134 and 169.
• 24Has Labour Law No. 37 of 2015 been amended, and what is the status of any amendment proposal?Labour Law 37/2015 remains in force as published in Gazette 4386, distinct from a first-amendment bill that stayed at parliamentary reading.
• 25Non-compete and confidentiality clauses in the employment contractNon-compete and confidentiality terms under Civil Code articles 909–910, read with the Labour Law 37/2015 protection of freedom of work.
• 26The employer’s occupational safety and health dutiesEmployer and worker occupational safety duties under articles 113–123 of Labour Law 37/2015, and the role of the National Center.
• 27A foreign oil company hiring in Iraq: six labour questions before day oneA labour checklist for foreign oil companies in Iraq: who the Labour Law covers, permits for foreign staff, layers of subcontractors, site safety, and social security.
• 28Fewer hours or working away from the office: how to write the agreementHow a part-time employment contract is drafted in Iraq within the weekly hours band, and how home-based or flexible work is arranged in a written contract while the worker’s rights stay intact.
• 29Building the year's calendar in a private workplace: paid rest, feast days, and work on a holidayHow a private employer in Iraq builds the year's calendar: the weekly rest day, general, special and temporary holidays under Law No. 12 of 2024, and the rate payable if someone works on a holiday.
• 30Resignation under the Labour LawThe thirty-day resignation notice, what a worker owes for leaving early, the leaving gratuity, and how resigning differs from article 49.
• 31Strike under Iraqi labour legislation in forceConditions for a peaceful strike and seven days’ notice to the Ministry under articles 161–164 of Labour Law 37/2015, and the effect on the contract.
• 32Wages and social security of subcontractor workers: who bears them?Joint liability of principal and subcontractor for wages and rights under article 12 of the Labour Law, and social-security notice under Law 18/2023.
• 33Trainee, worker on probation, or employee? Three relationships with similar namesHow to tell apart a vocational training programme under a written contract, probation inside an employment contract, and paid in-house “training”, and what follows from each under Iraq’s Labour Law.
• 34When a business is sold, merged or leased: who still owes the workers?What happens to workers’ contracts and accrued rights when a project in Iraq is sold, merged, leased or passed to heirs, and how liability is shared between the new owner and the previous one.
• 35Permitted deductions from a worker’s wageLawful wage deductions and the twenty and thirty per cent caps under article 57 of the Labour Law, not applying to legal alimony.
• 36When is the person working for you a “worker” in law?A three-question working test for worker status under Iraq’s Labour Law, and how a worker differs from an independent contractor or a public servant.
• 37A workplace injury in the private sector: the compensation route under two statutesHow compensation for a workplace injury is read under article 124 of Labour Law No. 37 of 2015 and the work-injury branch of Law No. 18 of 2023 on workers’ pensions and social security.
• 38Transfer, secondment, or a change of a worker’s workplaceWhat organising the project and assigning tasks under article 41 allows, and the contract’s limit in article 37, without inventing a secondment scheme.
• 39The first day after a workplace accident: an employer’s checklist hour by hourWhat an Iraqi employer does in the first hours after a work accident: medical care, the day’s wage, the 24-hour report to the police and social security inspection, health notifications, and the file to keep.
• 40The establishment’s internal regulations: when they are required and what they must containThe duty of an employer who regularly employs ten or more workers to prepare internal rules under article 136, their contents, approval, and posting.
• 41Types of leave under Iraqi Labour Law No. 37 of 2015A map of leave under Labour Law 37/2015: weekly rest and holidays, annual, sick, family-event, mourning, Hajj, public-duty, maternity and unpaid leave, with the article for each.
• 42Probation in an Iraqi employment contract, and when the contract may end during itProbation under Labour Law 37/2015: when it is allowed, its maximum length, the bar on repeating it, ending the contract during it, notice, and the worker's pay, leave and social security.
• 43Wages when work stops, and force majeure, under Iraqi labour lawIs the wage paid when a project stops? Articles 40 and 72 of Labour Law 37/2015, the difference between an exceptional-event stoppage and one caused by the employer, and what force majeure does to the contract.
• 44What the law makes an employer pay for an Iraqi or a foreign workerThe costs Iraqi law puts on an employer for an Iraqi or foreign worker: wage and add-ons, paid leave, end of service, social security contribution rates, work-permit and entry charges, travel and housing duties.
• 45Private-sector worker rights under Iraq's Labour Law No. 37 of 2015A checklist of what a private-sector worker in Iraq is entitled to under Labour Law 37/2015: pay and its protection, hours and rest, equal treatment and freedom from harassment, safety, union rights, and the route to the labour court.

Always check the text in force and its amendments in the official source.

To ask about your matter