Section 2: Interpretation

2. Interpretation In this Act— “agreement” means a contract of employment or contract of service between an employer and a worker, whether oral, written, implied or express; “basic wage or salary”, in relation to a worker, means— (a) where the terms and conditions of employment of the worker are governed by Remuneration Regulations, an arbitral award or an agreement, whether oral or written, express or implied, the [Issue 6] E9B – 2 Revised Laws of Mauritius basic wage or salary prescribed in the Remuneration Regulations, award or agreement, or where the employer pays a higher wage or salary, the higher wage or salary so paid, but does not include any allowance by any name called, and whether paid in cash or in kind; (b) in any other case, all the emoluments received by the worker, excluding any bonus or overtime; “child” means a person under the age of 16; “collective agreement” has the same meaning as in the Employment Relations Act; “comparable full-time worker” means a full-time worker who— (a) has the same type of employment relationship; (b) is engaged in the same or a similar type of work or occupation; and (c) is employed in the same establishment, enterprise or branch of activity, as a part-time worker; “continuous employment” means the employment of a worker under an agreement or under more than one agreement where the interval between an agreement and the next does not exceed 28 days; “Council” means the Labour Advisory Council established under section 64; “Court” means the Industrial Court established under the Industrial Court Act; “day” means any period of 24 consecutive hours; “employer”, subject to section 33— (a) means a person who employs a worker and is responsible for the payment of remuneration to the worker; (b) includes— (i) a job contractor; (ii) a person, other than another shareworker, who shares the profit or gross earnings of a shareworker; “enterprise” includes a trade or business; “fortnight” means any period of 14 consecutive days; “good and sufficient cause” includes— (a) illness or injury certified by a medical practitioner; E9B – 3 [Issue 5] Employment Rights Act (b) absence authorised by the employer; (c) absence due to participation in a lawful strike; “goods vehicle” has the same meaning as in the Road Traffic Act; “harassment” means any unwanted conduct, verbal, non-verbal, visual, psychological or physical, based on age, disability, HIV status, domestic circumstances, sex, sexual orientation, race, colour, language, religion, political, trade union or other opinion or belief, national or social origin, association with a minority, birth or other status, that a reasonable person would have foreseen that a worker would be affected negatively in his dignity; “industrial undertaking” includes— (a) mining and quarrying operations or other activities connected with mineral prospecting; (b) the manufacture, production, assembly, installation, repair, maintenance, modification or destruction of materials or properties; (c) ship building operations; (d) the generation, transformation, and supply of electric power or other type of energy; (e) the construction, extension, installation, repair, maintenance, alteration or demolition of buildings, airfields, tramway lines, harbours, dockyards, piers, inland water ways, roads, tunnels, bridges, drainage, water pipes, telegraphic and telephonic installations, electric gas or water works or other construction work including the preparation for or laying the founda ies; (c) ship building operations; (d) the generation, transformation, and supply of electric power or other type of energy; (e) the construction, extension, installation, repair, maintenance, alteration or demolition of buildings, airfields, tramway lines, harbours, dockyards, piers, inland water ways, roads, tunnels, bridges, drainage, water pipes, telegraphic and telephonic installations, electric gas or water works or other construction work including the preparation for or laying the foundation of any such work or structure; and (f) such other undertaking as the Minister may, by regulations, determine; “job contractor” means a person who employs a worker to perform any work or service that the person has contracted to do or provide for another person; “local authority” has the same meaning as in the Local Government Act; “Minister” means the Minister to whom responsibility for the subject of labour and employment relations is assigned; “National Pensions Fund” means the National Pensions Fund established under the National Pensions Act; “National Savings Fund” means the National Savings Fund established under the National Savings Fund Act; “night work” means work which is performed, whether in shifts or otherwise, during a period of not less than 7 consecutive hours between 6 p.m and 6 a.m; “notional hourly rate” means the hourly rate as calculated in section 15; [Issue 5] E9B – 4 Revised Laws of Mauritius “officer” means an officer designated by the Permanent Secretary; “part-time worker” means a worker whose normal hours of work are less than those of a comparable full-time worker; “pay period” means the period for which remuneration is paid under section 21; “Permanent Secretary” means the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry; “place of work” means a place where work is performed under an agreement; “public holiday” has the same meaning as in the Public Holidays Act; “public officer” has the same meaning as in the Constitution; “remuneration”— (a) means all emoluments, in cash or in kind, earned by a worker under an agreement; (b) includes— (i) any sum paid by an employer to a worker to cover expenses incurred in relation to the special nature of his work; (ii) any money to be paid to a job contractor, for work, by the person employing the job contractor; and (iii) any money due as a share of profits; “Remuneration Regulations” means any regulations made by the Minister under section 93 of the Employment Relations Act and includes any Remuneration Order, made under the repealed Industrial Relations Act, which is still in operation; “retirement age” means, in respect of a worker whose month and year of birth are mentioned in Column 1 of the First Schedule, the date on which the worker attains the age specified in Column 2 of that Schedule; “severance allowance” means an amount calculated in accordance with section 46; “shareworker” means a person who— (a) is remunerated wholly or partly by a share in the profits of the enterprise for which he works, or gross earnings of an enterprise obtained from the work done by him; and (b) is not an owner of the main equipment, premises and materials used in the work he does; “shift work” means work organised in 2 or more shifts in a period of 24 consecutive hours; “shop” means a place where any wholesale or retail trade or business is carried on; E9B – 5 [Issue 5] Employment Rights Act “stipulated hours” means the hours of work specified in section 14 (1) (a) and 14 (4) (a) or such lesser num he works, or gross earnings of an enterprise obtained from the work done by him; and (b) is not an owner of the main equipment, premises and materials used in the work he does; “shift work” means work organised in 2 or more shifts in a period of 24 consecutive hours; “shop” means a place where any wholesale or retail trade or business is carried on; E9B – 5 [Issue 5] Employment Rights Act “stipulated hours” means the hours of work specified in section 14 (1) (a) and 14 (4) (a) or such lesser number of hours of work as may be specified in an agreement; “threatening behaviour” means any behaviour or declaration of intention to use force on, or to intimidate, a worker; “trade or business” means any occupation, calling, trade, business, profession, industry, service or other commercial activity; “trade union” has the same meaning as in the Employment Relations Act; “Transition Unemployment Benefit” means the unemployment benefit referred to in section 44; “Tribunal” means the Employment Relations Tribunal established under the Employment Relations Act; “week” means any period of 7 consecutive days; “week day” means any day other than a public holiday; “worker”, subject to section 33 or 40— (a) means a person who has entered into, or works under, an agreement or a contract of apprenticeship, other than a contract of apprenticeship regulated under the Mauritius Institute of Training and Development Act, whether by way of casual work, manual labour, clerical work or otherwise and however remunerated; (b) includes— (i) a part-time worker; (ii) a former worker where appropriate; (iii) a shareworker; (c) does not include— (i) a job contractor; (ii) except in relation to sections 4, 20, 30, 31 and Parts VIII, VIIIA, IX, X and XI, a person whose basic wage or salary is at a rate in excess of 360,000 rupees per annum; “Workfare Programme” means the Workfare Programme set up under section 41; “young person” means a person, other than a child, who is under the age of 18. [S. 2 amended by s. 3 of Act 6 of 2013 w.e.f. 11 June 2013.]