PAPER, PLASTICS, CHEMICALS AND PETROLEUM 
WAGES COUNCIL WAGE REGLATION [ S.L.452.37 1
SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 452.37
PAPER, PLASTICS, CHEMICALS AND 
PETROLEUM WAGES COUNCIL 
WAGE REGLATION ORDER
6th June, 1972
LEGAL NOTICE 97 of 1973, as amended by Legal Notices 47 of 1974,
109 and 133 of 1975, 99 of 1976, 89 of 1977, 131 of 1978 and 18 of 1981.
Title.
Petroleum Wages Council Wage Regulation Order.
Application of 
Order.
2. The provisions of the Schedule to this Order shall apply to
all employees in respect of whom the Paper, Plastics, Chemicals
and Petroleum Wages Council operates. 
Amended by:
L.N. 47 of 1974;
L.N. 109 of 1975;
L.N. 133 of 1975;
L.N. 99 of 1976;
L.N. 89 of 1977;
L.N. 131 of 1978;
L.N. 18 of 1981.
SCHEDULE
(Article 2)
Interpretation.
Cap. 252.
1. In this Schedule, unless the context otherwise requires -
"customary holidays" means the days (other than Sundays)
declared for the time being to be public holidays by or under the
National Holidays and other Public Holidays Act;
"day" in the case of shift employees, means a period of twenty-
four consecutive hours; in all other cases it means a period running
from midnight of one day to midnight of the next following day;
"half-day" means a period of twelve consecutive hours ending at
twelve noon or midnight;
"hours of work" means the time in any day during which
enployees are at the disposal of the employer, exclusive of the
intervals allowed for meals and rest;
Cap. 343.
"learner" means a person other than apprentice, who is over the
age of fourteen years and under the age of nineteen years and who
is receiving training in any calling to which this Schedule applies,
and in respect of whom the enployer holds a permit issued by the
Director of Labour, in terms of the Employment and Training
Services Act;
"skilled employee" means an employee who has a particular
training and knowledge of the trade or machine connected with the
trade he is working on and can prove his skill;
"night shift" means any period of employment that includes any
hours from 10.00 p.m. of one day to 6.00 a.m. of the next following
day;
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WAGES COUNCIL WAGE REGLATION
"overtime" means any time worked on Sundays or on customary
holidays or in excess of the normal working hours of the
establishment agreed upon between the employer and the
employee;
"part-time employee" means any employee who is employed for
not more than twenty-five hours in any one week;
"period of employment" means the time in any day during which
employees are at the disposal of the employer, inclusive of the
intervals allowed for meals and rest;
"shift employee" means an employee who is regularly engaged
on alternate day and night shift work on a regular cycle basis;
"time-and-a-half" and "double time" mean respectively one-and-
a-half and twice the actual rate applicable to the employee;
"wages" means remuneration or earnings payable in money by an
employer to an employee;
"week" means a calendar week;
"weekly day of rest" means a period of twenty-four consecutive
hours commencing at the time at which the employee would
normally commence his turn of duty;
"whole-time employee" means any employee other than a part-
time employee.
Hours of work. 2. The minimum weekly wage shall be related to a week of
not more than - 
( a ) forty-four hours in the case of whole-time employees
other than watchmen; and 
( b ) sixty hours of work in the case of watchmen, spread
over a six-day week.
Minimum wages of 
whole-time 
employee.
3. (1) Whole-time skilled employees shall not be paid in any
week less than the following wages:
( a ) during the first year of employment in the 
trade ....................................................... Lm27.88
( b ) during the second and subsequent years of
employment in the trade ......................... Lm28.63.
(2) Whole-time employees, other than skilled employees and
watchmen, shall not be paid in any week less than the following
wages:
at age 18 years or over ........................... Lm26.88
at age 17 years  ...................................... Lm23.97
at age 16 years ....................................... Lm22.74
(3) Watchmen shall not be paid less than Lm28.63 in any week.
Night shift 
allowance.
4. Without prejudice to the payment of any overtime to which
such employees are entitled in accordance with paragraph 8, and
where no other allowance exists for morning and/or afternoon
shifts, whole-time employees working on night shift duty shall, in
PAPER, PLASTICS, CHEMICALS AND PETROLEUM 
WAGES COUNCIL WAGE REGLATION [ S.L.452.37 3
addition to the weekly wage applicable to them, be entitled to a
night shift allowance equivalent to two liri per week.
Minimum 
remuneration of 
part-time 
employees.
5. Part-time employees shall be entitled to a minimum hourly
rate calculated  pro rata  in accordance with the provisions of
paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Schedule.
Minimum daily 
rest.
6. All whole-time employees shall be allowed intervals for
meals and rest of not less in the aggregate than one hour in every
day to be availed of as agreed upon between the employer and the
employee.
Minimum weekly 
rest.
7. All whole-time employees shall be allowed one whole day
off in every week.
Minimum rates of 
overtime.
8. (1) Whole-time employees other than watchmen shall be
paid at the rates of time-and-a-half for overtime work performed on
week days and at double time for work performed on Sundays. The
rate of double time shall be paid for work done on customary
holidays in addition to the normal day’s pay.
(2) Watchmen shall be entitled to overtime at the rate of time-
and-a-half for all time worked in excess of sixty hours over a
period of six days and double time for work performed on the
seventh day and on customary holidays.
Vacation leave.
year, to -
( a ) all customary holidays with full pay, and
( b ) after three months in employment, vacation leave of
such number of working days with full pay as is
equivalent to the number of working days as that
particular employee should normally attend to work
during a period of four weeks:
Provided that whole-time employees who have
been in employment for less than one year shall be
entitled to such part of the said vacation leave as is in
proportion to the number of months in employment.
Sick leave.
Cap. 318.
Cap. 318.
10. Whole-time employees shall be entitled to sick leave as
follows:
( a ) after six months continuous service, to six days sick
leave on full pay, less the full amount of any sickness
benefit to which they may be entitled terms of the
Social Security Act, and
( b ) in every calendar year after one year’s continuous
service, to twelve days leave on full pay less the full
amount of any sickness benefit to which they may be
entitled in terms of the Social Security Act, and to
twelve days leave on half pay less half the amount of
such sickness benefit:
Provided that:
( a ) a medical certificate certifying incapacity for work
shall be produced to the employer who shall have the
right if he deems fit to send his own medical officer to
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WAGES COUNCIL WAGE REGLATION
examine the employee;
( b ) if a whole-time employee is suffering from an illness
which is prolonged over a continuous period
exceeding fifteen days, the period of sick leave
allowed to him shall for that calender year be extended
to fifteen days sick leave on full pay (less the full
deductions for sickness benefit) followed by fifteen
days sick leave on half pay (less half the deductions
for sickness benefit).
Bereavement 
leave.
11. Whole-time employees shall be allowed two days leave on
full pay on the ocassion of the death of any of the following
relatives: the wife, husband, father, mother (or the person who, at
the time of death, was in fact acting as the father or mother of the
employee), son, daughter, brother or sister.
Special leave. 12. A whole-time employee shall be allowed three days leave
with pay on the occasion of his marriage and two days leave on full
pay on the occasion of the birth of a child to his wife, on condition
that the employee will remain in employment for at least three
months after such occasion.
Jury service leave. 13. A whole-time employee shall, if called upon to serve as
juror, be allowed time off as necessary, without any deduction from
pay to which he could otherwise have been entitled, so as to enable
him to attend to his duties at the Courts.
Injury leave 
Cap. 318.
14. A whole-time employee shall be entitled to a maximum of
one year injury leave on full pay, less the full amount of any injury
benefit to which such employee may be entitled in terms of the
Social Security Act, if he is injured during the actual discharge of
his duty, and such injury is not due to any contributory negligence
on his part, or to the contravention by him of any safety rules laid
down by the management.
Retiring age. 15. In cases where the retiring age of a male employee is
expected at the age of sixty years, such employee shall be given the
opportunity by his employer to retain his employment beyond this
age at least until the age of sixty-one years, provided that the
employee in question shall still be allowed, if he so wishes, to retire
at the age of sixty years.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order but it is intended to indicate its
applicability).
The above provisions shall apply to all employees in any
undertaking or part of an undertaking, the activities of which
consist wholly or mainly in any one of the following -
( a ) the extraction, preparation, processing, or manufacture
of table salt, oils of any kind, fats, margarine and
similar products, chemicals (including petroleum) or
chemical products but excluding employees working
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WAGES COUNCIL WAGE REGLATION [ S.L.452.37 5
in lime kilns;
( b ) the manufacture of paper, packaging, or the
manufacture of articles made wholly or mainly of
paper, including paper bags and exercise books;
( c ) the manufacture of cardboard or articles made wholly
or mainly of cardboard including cardboard boxes and
containers;
( d ) the processing or manufacture of plastics or articles
made wholly or mainly of plastics, including
polythene bags, plastic baby pants, plastic aprons and
other plastic garments, polythene wrapping and plastic
insulation material, but excluding -
(i) luggage, brief cases, handbags, shopping bags
and other bags of similar nature;
(ii) textiles made from plastic fibres; 
(iii) imitation jewellery and neon signs.
''chemicals'' includes basic industrial chemicals, gases,
fertilizers, natural or synthetic rubber, and petroleum but excludes
gases for domestic use;
''chemical products'' includes matches, paints, varnishes,
lacquers, candles, soaps, synthetic detergents, bitumen, bituminous
emulsions and other articles made wholly or mainly of natural or
synthetic rubber, but excludes textiles made from natural or man-
made fibres, and the manufacture, repair or rebuilding and
retreading of tyres;
''plastics'' means any material including sythetic resins that
contains as an essential ingredient an organic substance of large
molecular weight, is solid in its finished state and at some stage in
its manufacture or in its processing into finished articles can be
shaped by flow.
