The 2022 Code of Good Practice on the Prevention and Elimination of Harassment in the Workplace includes sexual harassment
The Code of Good Practice on the Prevention and Elimination of Harassment in the Workplace, 2022 (the Harassment Code) came…
INHERENT REQUIREMENT OF PHYSICAL FITNESS AS A COMPLETE DEFENCE TO A CLAIM OF UNFAIR DISCRIMINATION
On 30 March 2022, the Constitutional Court handed down judgment in the City of Cape Town’s favour in the alleged…
How will covid-19 be managed in the workplace once the national state of disaster ends?
On 15 March 2022, the Minister of Employment and Labour signed the newly drafted Code of Practice: Managing Exposure to SARS-COV-2…
BCHC: In order to reboot the economy, government, business and trade unions must work together
June 1, 2020Written by Bradley Conradie Early in March 2020, South Africans became acutely aware of the global pandemic, Covid-19, when the first infection was confirmed. The corona virus had crossed our borders and was no longer some disease that other countries had to deal with. At the time, many did not appreciate the impact that the…
Read moreBCHC: Guideline on employment issues relating to the corona virus
March 18, 2020Introduction This guideline deals with various employment related issues which have arisen as a result of the Corona Virus. A national state of disaster has been declared by President Ramaphosa to enable the national executive to deal effectively with the current Corona Virus. A national state of disaster allows regulations or directives to be issued…
Read moreBCHC: An employer’s duties in the event of a viral outbreak such as the corona virus
March 12, 2020With the emergence of the Corona virus, China has imposed several restrictions and limitations on its travel and trade to mitigate the spread of the virus in order to safeguard its citizens and the international community. Just as China has a duty to protect its citizens, employers have a duty to protect their employees in…
Read moreBCHC: When can employers expect employees to retire?
March 4, 2020Written by Danny Hodgson Traditionally, most employees retired around the age of 65. However, there is now a growing trend to work beyond that age. This could be due to increasing life expectancy, economic hardship or a failure to plan properly for the future. Whatever the reason, it is important for employers to know how…
Read moreBCHC: Is there a rule against re-employing a dismissed employee?
Written by Jeannette Vlok Some employers have been faced with the difficult decision of having to decide whether or not to re-employ a dismissed employee or an employee who resigned after having been charged with misconduct. When there is a change in leadership or an employer’s policy, there may be a difference in opinion as…
Read moreBCHC: Termination of employment without a hearing
Written by Nikita Reddy Introduction In Old Mutual Limited and others v Peter Moyo and another (A5041/19) [2020] ZAGPJHC 1 (14 January 2020), the High Court had to determine whether Old Mutual committed a breach of contract when it terminated Mr Moyo’s employment contract in terms of a notice provision instead of subjecting him to…
Read moreBCHC: An employer’s duties in the event of a viral outbreak such as the corona virus
Written by Danny Hodgson With the emergence of the Corona virus, China has imposed several restrictions and limitations on its travel and trade to mitigate the spread of the virus in order to safeguard its citizens and the international community. Just as China has a duty to protect its citizens, employers have a duty to…
Read moreBCHC: The fine line between incapacity due to poor performance and misconduct
February 10, 2020Written by Sharon Mongalo and edited by Prof Darcy Du Toit The Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995 (LRA) recognises incapacity and misconduct as grounds for dismissal. Schedule 8 to the LRA also provides guidelines in relation to the different procedures that have to be followed in the case of incapacity due to poor performance…
Read moreBCHC: The prescription of costs ordered in the labour court
December 5, 2019Written by Danny Hodgson and edited by Prof Halton Cheadle The general principle that costs follow the result does not apply in the Labour Court as the Labour Court is guided by the principle of fairness in determining whether or not costs should be awarded specifically where individual employees are concerned. This requirement is also…
Read moreBCHC: Can The CCMA or Bargaining Council Determine the Validity of a Mutual Separation Agreement in Unfair Dismissal Disputes?
November 11, 2019Written by Venolan Naidoo and edited by Prof Halton Cheadle It often happens in the workplace that an employer and employee for whatever reason wish to part ways. The parties then enter into a mutual separation agreement (MSA) where they record the agreed terms of the termination of employment in writing. It also often happens…
Read moreBCHC: Automatic termination clauses in fixed term contracts
October 15, 2019Written by John Noble and edited by Prof Darcy Du Toit Employers often include automatic termination clauses in fixed-term employment contracts. The legality of these clauses however depends on the circumstances surrounding the employment relationship. Whilst the use of automatic termination clauses in fixed term employment contracts may be commercially justifiable, courts are scrutinising these…
Read moreBCHC: An interesting conflict when senior managers are union members
September 19, 2019Written by John Noble and edited by Prof Darcy Du Toit The interplay between senior management and more junior employees is a vital factor in any modern organisation. Equally vital, and often equally contentious, is the interplay between trade unions and employers. At the heart of these relationships is the age-old conflict between labour and…
Read moreBCHC: Can jurisdictional arguments be raised after a certificate of outcome has been issued?
August 8, 2019Written by Jeannette Vlok and edited by Bradley Conradie Parties often only realise that there are jurisdictional issues that they could raise before the date of the arbitration. The question then arises as to whether a party can or should raise those jurisdictional issues after the matter has already been conciliated. There is a misconception…
Read moreBCHC: Can employees be expected to disclose misconduct to their employer?
July 24, 2019Written by Danny Hodgson and edited by Prof Darcy Du Toit “Derivative misconduct” happens where an employee knew or must have known about misconduct by another employee but decided, without justification, not to disclose it to the employer. According to the Labour Appeal Court, it amounts to a breach of the duty of good faith…
Read moreBCHC: Can a volunteer be seen as an employee?
July 9, 2019By Venolan Naidoo, edited by Bradley Conradie Section 3(1)(b) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 75 of 1997 (BCEA) specifically excludes “unpaid volunteers working for an organisation serving a charitable purpose” from the application of the BCEA. Section 3 of the National Minimum Wage Act, 9 of 2018 (NMWA) also excludes an individual “who…
Read moreBCHC: The date of dismissal in a reasonable expectation of renewal dispute?
June 3, 2019Introduction It is easy to assume that the date of dismissal in a reasonable expectation of renewal dispute would be when an employee’s fixed term contract expires. This date becomes important to determine when an employee has to refer an unfair dismissal dispute to the CCMA or bargaining council. Section 190(2)(a) of the Labour Relations…
Read moreBCHC: A thank you to Judge Steenkamp
May 23, 2019It is with great sadness and shock that we mourn the death of our dear friend and colleague Judge Anton Steenkamp. Anton, a man of strength, resilience and integrity was also a kind hearted and compassionate soul. There can be no doubt that we have lost someone that has made a major contribution to the…
Read moreBCHC: Can an employee hold a reasonable expectation of renewal and permanency at the same time?
May 3, 2019An employee can refer an unfair dismissal dispute to the CCMA or bargaining council in terms of section 186(1)(b) of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995 (LRA) if the employee was employed on a fixed term contract and reasonably expected that the employer would – Renew the contract on the same or similar terms…
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