Rights of private-sector workers in Iraq

In briefArticle 42 of Labour Law No. 37 of 2015 lists a worker's rights one by one: pay for work done, daily and weekly rest, equal treatment, a harassment-free workplace, respect, training, being informed and consulted, safe conditions, bargaining, striking, and union membership. Other articles add protection against deductions, a cap on hours, leave, the voiding of any waiver, and a direct complaint to the labour court.

Someone working for a company, shop, factory or private office in Baghdad or any governorate falls under the Labour Law (No. 37 of 2015) rather than the Civil Service Law. The Law Office of Ali Barakat, in Baghdad, al-Yarmouk, sets out that worker's rights as a checklist to hold up against what actually happens at work, with a link to the detailed page for each item.

1. Who counts as a private-sector worker?

The statute covers every worker in Iraq unless a provision excludes them, but article 3 carves out State employees appointed under civil-service or special legislation, and members of the military, the police and the internal security forces. What decides it is the relationship itself: work for pay under the employer's direction and oversight. More on this in Who counts as a worker.

2. The list in article 42

Article 42(1) is the clearest text in this part of the statute because it names the worker's rights in order:

Pay for work done.
Daily and weekly rest.
Equal treatment in hiring and employment, free from discrimination.
Protection from harassment at work.
Respect in working relations.
Access to vocational training.
Being told about, and consulted on, matters that directly affect the job.
A workplace that is safe and does not damage health.
Bargaining to improve terms.
Striking, within the statute's rules.
The freedom to set up a union or become a member of one.

None of these is a loose promise; each is worked out in another article, as below.

3. Pay and how it is protected

Pay is made in Iraqi dinars unless the contract provides another currency, weekly or monthly according to the pay cycle, and never more than five days late, under article 53. Cheques or transfers are allowed only under a collective agreement, an arbitration award, or the worker's own signed agreement, which can be revoked whenever the worker chooses. The employer may not restrict how the worker spends the wage or force the worker to buy its goods or those of a particular shop, under article 55.

Deductions are allowed only where the law permits them, including court-ordered family maintenance, sums owed to the workers' pension and social security department, and union dues. Total deductions are capped at a share of pay that depends on how the wage compares with the minimum wage, and no interest runs on a debt the worker owes the employer, under article 57. Details are in Permitted deductions from wages, and what to do about late pay is in Delayed wages.

4. Hours, rest and leave

The working day is eight hours and the week forty-eight, with listed exceptions, and hours are shortened in dangerous, strenuous or unhealthy work, under article 67. Each day includes breaks totalling between half an hour and an hour, so that no stretch exceeds five hours, and there must be at least eleven unbroken hours of rest between two working days, under article 68. The kinds of leave, from annual to sick to maternity, are explained in Types of leave under the Labour Law, and overtime in Annual leave and overtime.

5. Equal treatment, no forced labour, no harassment

Direct and indirect discrimination in training, hiring and working conditions is prohibited, as is making a job conditional on staying out of a union; a requirement genuinely needed for a particular job is not discrimination, under article 8. Compulsory work of any kind, debt bondage included, is banned under article 9, and so are sexual harassment and any conduct that makes the workplace intimidating or degrading, under article 10. A worker facing any of these can complain straight to the labour court, and breaches can bring imprisonment or a fine, under article 11.

6. These rights cannot be signed away

The statute's rights are minimums: article 14 strikes down any contract term by which the worker surrenders one. Signing a contract that cuts leave or drops the end-of-service award does not make the right disappear.

7. Social security cover and the work card

Law No. 18 of 2023 on workers' pensions and social security brings a private-sector worker into cover from day one, including training and trial periods, under its first article. Every worker is also entitled to a free work card from the labour sections, bearing a photo and the social security number, under article 170 of the Labour Law.

8. When a right is breached

The route depends on the dispute. A disagreement over an existing right can be taken either to the employment and loans department or to the labour court; a dismissal must be contested within thirty days, before either the termination-of-service committee or the labour court. See Taking a labour dispute forward before court and Ending an employment contract.

The office follows these provisions from Baghdad, al-Yarmouk.

Legal basis and sources

Frequently asked questions

Can my employer pay my salary in dollars?

The starting rule is Iraqi currency, but the employment contract can provide otherwise, under article 53(1).

I signed a contract with no annual leave. Have I lost it?

No. Article 14 nullifies a term that reduces a statutory right, and the right survives.

Can I complain about harassment without going through management?

Yes. Article 11 lets a worker go directly to the labour court over harassment, discrimination or forced labour.

Can an employer make it a condition that I not join a union?

No. Article 8(2) forbids tying a job to staying out of a union or leaving one.

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

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Private-sector worker rights under Iraq's Labour Law No. 37 of 2015