Zimbabwe Labour Market Intelligence
National Employment Councils and their agreements
For most industries in Zimbabwe the wage floor and the grading structure are not set by one national figure. They are set by the council for that industry, in an agreement that is gazetted and then binds every employer in the industry. This page holds every council we can find a source for, and under each one the gazetted agreements themselves.
Prepared 5 October 2026
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Maximising Returns on Human Capital
National Employment Councils and their agreements
For most industries in Zimbabwe the wage floor and the grading structure are not set by one national figure. They are set by the council for that industry, in an agreement that is gazetted and then binds every employer in the industry. This page holds every council we can find a source for, and under each one the gazetted agreements themselves.
What a National Employment Council actually is
Employers and trade unions in one industry sit in a council together and negotiate. When the Minister registers what they agreed, it is published as a statutory instrument and from that day it binds every employer in that industry, whether or not they were in the room. So if you want to know the least you may lawfully pay somebody, the question is not what the national figure is. The question is which council covers you.
- 43
- councils
- 366
- gazetted agreements
- 180
- open as documents
- 12
- publish a wage page
Want the money rather than the paperwork?
The same figures arranged by sector, so you can see what the lowest grade earns across the economy in one table.
Showing 43 councils holding 363 gazetted agreements.
Farming, forestry and fishing
The downloads page carries the current minimum wage agreement for each subsector, including general agriculture from July 2026, horticulture from May 2026, tea and coffee from June 2026, timber from January 2026 and agro from February 2026.
- US$148.00 a month at the lowest grade. The lowest graded minimum. In force The 2025 sugarcane wage round. The report does not give the exact commencement date..
- US$129.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C2. In force From 1 September 2024.
- US$125.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C2. In force From 1 February 2024.
- US$105.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C2. In force From 1 January 2023.
- US$99.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C2. The top grade C2 is US$196.. In force Backdated to 1 May 2025.
- US$80.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C2. The top grade C2 is US$159.. In force From 1 June 2025.
- US$75.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C2. The top grade C2 is US$148.. In force From 1 May 2024.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
Mining and quarrying
The council website could not be reached when this page was built, so the gazetted agreements below are the reliable source for the schedule.
- US$418.78 a month at the lowest grade. Grade 1, the lowest of thirteen. In force 1 July to 31 December 2026. It was US$410.96 for the first half of 2026..
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
- US$300.02 a month at the lowest grade. Grade 1, the lowest of sixteen. In force 1 March to 31 December 2023.
Manufacturing
The downloads page carries a long run of wage agreements and notice board sheets, the current one running from 1 March 2026 to 31 August 2026.
- US$205.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of the graded worker categories. In force 1 October 2022 to 28 February 2023.
The council website publishes the Labour Act and its returns forms but no wage schedule, so the gazetted agreements below are the source.
- US$300.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade 1, the lowest of nine. In force January to June 2023.
- US$148.00 a month at the lowest grade. The lowest graded minimum. In force The 2025 sugarcane wage round. The report does not give the exact commencement date..
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
- US$148.00 a month at the lowest grade. The lowest graded minimum. In force The 2025 sugarcane wage round. The report does not give the exact commencement date..
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
The council publishes agreements on contracts, gratuities and child labour but no wage schedule, so the gazetted agreements below are the source.
- US$433.14 a month at the lowest grade. Grade 1.1, the lowest of ten grades each holding two levels. In force 1 October to 31 December 2024.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
- US$184.00 a month at the lowest grade. Level 1, the lowest of sixteen, covering general worker, packer, presser and folder. In force From 1 February 2023.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
The agreements page carries eight current wage agreements by subsector for January to August 2026, covering plastics, battery, pharmaceutical, fertilizers, explosives, paints, personal care and industrial chemicals.
- US$150.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, which differs by subsector: plastics US$150.00, fertilizers and agro chemicals US$173.69, personal care US$190.80, battery US$200.00, industrial chemicals US$208.00, paints and printing inks US$229.00, explosives US$250.00 and pharmaceutical US$275.60. In force From 1 January 2023.
The downloads page carries separate wage schedules for electronics and telecommunications, for internet and email providers, for electronic security systems and for broadcasting, covering 1 April to 30 June 2026, plus a third quarter 2026 agreement.
- US$190.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of A1 to C4. In force 1 August to 30 September 2023.
The downloads page carries monthly wage notices, the most recent being the July 2026 notice.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
Construction and building materials
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
The council publishes circulars including week numbering guides and shutdown notices, but no wage schedule, so the gazetted agreements below are the source.
The downloads page carries the wage agreement for the cement bricks and other cement products subsector and the manufacturing subsector agreement for April 2025 to 31 March 2026.
The council website could not be reached when this page was built.
Transport and logistics
The downloads page carries the gazetted wage notices, most recently notice four and notice five of 2026.
- US$215.00 a month at the lowest grade. The single industry minimum, no grades are set. In force 1 May to 30 November 2024.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
The council publishes the principal motor industry agreement and its compliance forms but no wage schedule, so the gazetted agreements below are the source.
Trade, services and hospitality
The council website is live but its downloads area is closed to the public, so the gazetted agreements below are the source.
The downloads page carries the updated wages for January to March 2026 and the agreement gazetted as statutory instrument 53 of 2026.
The notices page offers the sectors agreement for 1 April to 31 December 2024, which carries the wage tables. Nothing more recent is posted there, so the 2026 agreement below is the current text.
The council website carries no downloads area, so the gazetted agreements below are the source.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreement below carries the schedule.
- US$251.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade 1A, the lowest of grades 1A to 12. In force From 1 November 2023.
The council has a downloads area but it currently holds no documents.
Money, insurance and pensions
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
The resources page carries the agreements on minimum salaries, the current one running from January to June 2026.
- US$484.10 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, the lowest of the A1 to C3 scale. In force 1 January to 30 June 2026.
Health, welfare and education
The agreements page carries the wage agreement for April 2026 to March 2027 and the June 2026 agreement, alongside earlier ones back to 2021.
- US$291.58 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, general hand or groundsman. In force From the first day of the month after registration. The instrument was published on 15 November 2024..
The agreements page carries the downloadable agreements with their salary tables, most recently the 2025 notice and agreement.
- US$160.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade A1, independent H1, day rural schools, which is the lowest band. Day urban and boarding schools pay more.. In force From 1 September 2025.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
Public service and local authorities
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
- US$375.00 a month at the lowest grade. Grade 1, the lowest of nine. In force From 1 August 2025. It was US$310.00 from 1 May 2025..
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreement below carries the schedule.
No public wage page was found. The gazetted agreement below carries the schedule.
Energy, water and utilities
The council publishes training manuals and a code of conduct but no wage schedule, so the gazetted agreement below is the source.
No public wage page was found. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
No public wage page was found for this council. The gazetted agreements below carry the schedules.
Agreements whose title does not name the industry
Shown on their own
These were gazetted under a title that says only National Employment Council, without naming the industry, so they are shown on their own rather than filed under a council they might not belong to.
Opens the gazetted document itself.
Opens the record for this instrument, where the document is kept.
Opens the record for this instrument, where the document is kept.
As at 5 Oct 2026, 14:43. Method version unknown.