www.Droit-Afrique.com may put an end to it by notifying the other party about its decision in writing. This notification must be done either through registered mail, or handed directly to the addressee against a receipt. Art.D.86-30.- The date when the letter is presented shall serve as the starting point for the notice. In the event of dismissal, the notice letter must clearly state the reason for the termination. The minimum duration of the notice shall be set at: • 1 week for employees who have worked for the same employer for a period shorter or equal to 6 months. • 15 days for employees who have worked for the same employee for more than 6 months. During the notice period, the parties shall have to fulfil their respective obligations to one another. However, the domestic worker, whether he/she has been fired or resigned, shall be authorised to be absent each day for 2 hours to enable him/her easily look for a new job. The employee shall not suffer any salary deduction on account of his/her use of these hours of freedom. Their distribution, within the framework of the work schedule, shall be set through mutual agreement, outside hours for rest. In the absence of an agreement, these hours of freedom shall be chosen alternatively on one day chosen by the employer, and one day chosen by the employee. These hours of absence may be stopped at the end of the notice period, at the worker's request. Art.D.86-31.- The employer's waiver of work during the notice period shall not result, till the expiry of this period, in any reduction in the salary and other benefits that the employee would have enjoyed during this period. The notice period may not interrupted or extended even in the event of force majeure, unless the parties so agree mutually. Art.D.86-32.-However, when the notice has been made known before the worker goes on leave, the period shall be suspended during the period of paid leave and restart upon the expiry of the said leave. When the notice has been made known during the leave period, the notice period shall be postponed until upon the expiry of the said leave when it starts to be counted. Implementing Decree of the Labour Code Mali Art.D.86-33.- In case the notice is not respected, the party responsible for termination shall have to pay the other party compensation equal to the sum of stipends in cash and in kind that correspond to the duration of this notice. A sacked domestic worker who finds a new job may, after informing his/her employer, stop working for the latter immediately half of the notice period has been respected and this, without having to pay compensation for not observing the period. Serious wrongdoing shall lead to the loss of the right to notice subject to the appraisal of the competent court as concerns the seriousness of the wrongdoing. Art.D.86-34.- When a worker has been ill for over 6 months, an employer who feels the need to replace the worker definitively may duly take note of the termination of the contract on account of the prolonged absence of the domestic worker by complying with the relevant legal procedure. The employer shall have to inform the worker about this fact through registered mail, pay him/her a compensation for paid leave and if the conditions of seniority are met, the severance pay that he/she would have gotten in the event of dismissal. Art.D.86-35.- A domestic worker, after having worked for a period of one year, shall be entitled to severance pay, calculated based on an average gross salary of the past 12 months completed before the end of the service in the conditions spelt out in articles L.53 to 55 of the Labour Code. The period of service shall refer to the period that passes between the date when the worker stated working for the employer and the date when he/she stops working, including contract suspension, considered as period of work. A sacked employee who fulfils, following several successive hires working for the same employer, the conditions required for the attribution of severance pay shall also be entitled to the said pay. Serious wrongdoing, which justifies immediate termination of the contract, shall relieve the employer of the obligation to give a domestic worker severance pay and notice. Art.D.86-36.- In the event of the worker's demise, the reporting wage, accessory benefits and compensations 10/29