Senior HR Officer – Malawi

About the role

BURNBURN Manufacturing designs, manufactures and distributes clean cookstoves across ten African markets. As HR lead in Malawi you will run the full employee lifecycle for staff and keep the company compliant with Malawian law, and you will also own the people side of the agent network, ensuring every agent is onboarded on the right terms, documents and systems.

Key responsibilities

• Run in-country recruitment end to end, issue contracts and job descriptions, track probation and fixed-term dates, and prepare monthly payroll inputs checked with Group Payroll.
• Run induction, probation reviews and the performance cycle, handle grievances, disciplinary cases and exits, and manage the labour-hire agency supplying short-term workers.
• Approve agent onboarding (identity, signed contract, engagement route, mobile money details), review commission schemes for HR and legal risk, reconcile agency headcounts and invoices monthly, and support the rollout of the onboarding platform.
• Ensure compliance with the Employment Act and Labour Relations Act, Minimum Wage Orders, Pension Act 2023, PAYE and fringe benefits tax, TEVET levy, workers' compensation and safety laws, and the Data Protection Act 2024.
• Localise HR policies, report monthly on headcount, agents onboarded, turnover, open cases and compliance, and support engagement surveys and training.

Required profile

• Degree in human resource management, business, law, psychology or a related field.
• At least 5 years of HR generalist experience, including 2 or more at senior officer level or above in Malawi.
• Hands-on payroll and statutory compliance experience in Malawi, and employee relations experience under Malawian law.
• Experience managing a large non-employee workforce such as sales agents, casuals, contractors or outsourced staff.
• Fluent written and spoken English; membership of IPMM or another recognised HR body is desirable.

Required skills

• Strong data discipline with Excel, HR or ERP systems and accurate records.
• Desirable: digital onboarding, e-signature or mobile money payments, Microsoft Dynamics NAV or Business Central, and Chichewa.