23/02/2026
For over 30 years, Briscoe Attorneys has been a market leader in drafting employment contracts and workplace documentation. Today, that expertise matters more than ever.
With the introduction of the Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2025, Botswana’s labour law has undergone significant reform placing stronger emphasis on employee protection, procedural fairness, combined with new dispute resolution mechanisms. Employers and HR managers should be forewarned that the new Act requires a radical redrafting of conditions of employment and workplace procedures.
Probation is now capped at six months, and termination during probation is more difficult. The Act provides that, unless there is a commercial rationale, an employee should not be employed on a fixed-term contract lasting more than 12 months.
The new Act gives employees some significant new rights. In addition to the minimum 20 days of paid sick leave days to which an employee is already entitled, the new Act introduces 20 days of paid hospitalisation leave. The Act introduces paid family responsibility leave, and increases maternity leave from 12 to 14 weeks with 70% basic pay. The Act also provides for at least 5 days of paid paternity leave and 10 weeks of adoption leave.
An important provision is that a trade union no longer needs to represent at least one-third of the workforce in order to enjoy organisational rights
The Act overhauls the machinery for resolving disputes at work by abolishing the system of referring a dispute to the District Labour Office. The Mediation and Arbitration Commission is established as an independent dispute resolution body. If the dispute is not resolved by mediation, the party referring the dispute is the one who decides whether it goes to arbitration or to the Industrial Court.
In order to ensure compliance with the new Act, employers are advised to review and revise all employment documentation including offer letters, employment contracts, terms and conditions of service, workplace policies, HR manuals, as well as disciplinary and grievance procedures.
Having assisted hundreds of employers in Botswana, both large and small, review and draft such documentation for over 30 years, Briscoe Attorneys is the market leader in providing this service.
