VAN WYK v MINISTER OF EMPLOYMENT AND LABOUR: A NEW ERA OF PARENTAL LEAVE Just last week, in a judgment with constitutional significance for the workplace, the High Court has ruled that all parents, irrespective of gender, should be entitled to four months of parental...

ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES / VIRTUAL COMMISSIONING OF AFFIDAVITS Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the terms ‘Teams’ and ‘Zoom’ were virtually unheard of in general, and were, for all intents and purposes, not tools in most businesses. However, within weeks after...

OBJECTING TO THE CCMA CON/ARB PROCESS When an employee refers a dispute to the CCMA, e.g., an unfair dismissal dispute, the CCMA ordinarily sets the matter down for a con/arb process, which means that arbitration will immediately follow if the parties are unable to...

NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE A National Minimum Wage (NMW) was introduced since January 2019 in an attempt to alleviate poverty and reduce wage inequality, amongst others, and since announcing a R20.00 per hour minimum wage in 2019, the NMW has steadily been...

NEW EARNINGS THRESHOLD: 1 MARCH 2023 The Minister of Employment and Labour is empowered, in terms of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (“BCEA”), to make determinations regarding the earnings threshold. This grants employees who earn below the threshold...

SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIM UNDER SECTION 60 OF THE EMPLOYMENT EQUITY ACT 55 OF 1998 (the “Act”) The Labour Appeal Court in the matter of Amathole District Municipality v CCMA & Others (2023 44 ILJ 109 (LAC) found that the employer should not have been held liable in...

DISMISSAL: BREACH OF CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT In the matter of Jacobs v KwaZulu-Natal Treasury (2022) 43 ILJ 1286 (LAC), Ms. Jacobs, during 2009, formed part of a selection committee tasked with recommending a candidate for a position in the Department of Community...

REPEAL OF REGULATIONS REGARDING WEARING OF MASKS For the first time in over two years, South Africans can now appear in public places without wearing a face mask. According to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), there has been a decline in the...

PROCEDURAL FAIRNESS IN DISCIPLINARY ENQUIRIES: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING HEARD At the heart of the matter of Yolanda Dyantyi v Rhodes University & Others (846/2020) [2022] ZASCA 32 (29 March 2022) is the procedural fairness of a disciplinary enquiry. In this matter,...

STAYING THE ENFORCEMENT OF AN ARBITRATION AWARD PENDING INTERLOCUTORY APPLICATIONS On 24 May 2022, the Labour Court delivered a judgment in an application to stay the enforcement of an arbitration award in the matter of Denel SOC LTD v NUMSA obo Petersen and 1 Other...

MANAGING EXPOSURE TO COVID-19 IN THE WORKPLACE On 15 March 2020, a national state of disaster was declared in terms of the Disaster Management Act (Act 57 of 2002), and the Minister issued regulations in terms of this act, which have been amended on several occasions...

APPROVED CHANGES TO ADJUSTED ALERT LEVEL 1 COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS After a special Cabinet meeting was held on 31 January 2022, changes to the current Adjusted Alert Level 1 COVID-19 regulations were approved. According to information gathered by the Department of...

COMPENSATION FOR COVID-19 VACCINATION SIDE EFFECTS President Ramaphosa, during September 2021, announced government’s intent to introduce a ‘vaccine passport’ system.  The President’s message was not unexpected as it was in line with policy statements from other...

ADJUSTED ALERT LEVEL 2 In response to the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the country was placed on Adjusted Alert Level 3 of the lockdown almost two months ago. On Sunday, 12 September 2021, the President announced the easing of restrictions on the movement of...

MANDATORY COVID-19 VACCINATION IN THE WORKPLACE As the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out gains momentum, with citizens between the ages of 18 and 34 are now able to register for the vaccine, the question remains: can an employer introduce mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations...

ADJUSTED ALERT LEVEL 3: OBLIGATIONS OF THE EMPLOYER President Ramaphosa in his address to the nation on 25 July 2021, said that South Africa has largely passed the peak of the third wave of infections. The President announced that the country would move to Adjusted...

COVID-19 TEMPORARY EMPLOYEE/EMPLOYER RELIEF SCHEME (“TERS”) EXTENSION: 15 MARCH 2021 TO 25 JULY 2021 On 15 July 2021, the Minister of Labour issued a direction, in terms of which, the COVID-19 TERS has been extended for certain sectors that remain affected by the...

DECLARING A STATE OF EMERGENCY: WHAT DOES IT MEAN? In light of the current unrest, violence and looting in, mainly, Kwa-Zulu Natal and Gauteng, many citizens, and businesses alike, are calling on government to declare a state of emergency. A state of emergency is an...

COVID-19 THIRD WAVE: ADJUSTED ALERT LEVEL 4 It has been confirmed that South Africa is in the third wave of infections, which is as a result of the infectious Delta variant of the COVID-19, and which has been detected in 5 of South Africa’s provinces. According to...

COVID – 19 LOCKDOWN: DISMISSAL OF EMPLOYEES WHO REFUSE TO CARRY OUT THE EMPLOYERS LAWFUL AND REASONABLE INSTRUCTION TO RETURN TO WORK UNDER THE LOCKDOWN – SUBSTANTIVELY FAIR EMPLOYEES NOT GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO MITIGATE AGAINST SANCTION - PROCEDURALLY UNFAIR. What...

THE NEW EARNINGS THRESHOLD AND NEW NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE (NMW) FOR SOUTH AFRICA On Monday, 8 February 2021, the Labour Minister, Thulas Nxesi, published a gazette detailing the NMW for South Africa, which will come into effect as from 1 March 2021. This means that for...

CAN AN EMPLOYER DISCIPLINE AN EMPLOYEE, DURING THE NOTICE PERIOD, FOR MISCONDUCT? It is trite that a resignation is a unilateral act by the employee and does not need the employer's acceptance, however, in the most recent judgment in this regard, it has been held that...

LOCKDOWN LEVEL 3 REVISITED: EMPLOYERS’ DO’S AND DON’TS In an attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19, during the so called “second wave” of infections, on 28 December 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a move to adjusted Alert Level 3, which came into effect...

COVID-19: BUSINESS UNUSUAL: ALERT LEVEL 4 7 weeks into the unprecedented decision to declare a national state of disaster to curb the spread of Covid-19, the frustration of businesses and ordinary people are beginning to set in. Whilst most people welcome the lock...

COVID-19: THE UPLIFTMENT OF SOME RESTRICTIONS: WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR EMPLOYERS? As uplifting as it may be that government has decided to uplift restrictions of the lock down, there is little to be excited about. Firstly, the lock down remains very much in place....

COVID-19 AND ITS IMPACT ON LABOUR RELATED & OTHER MATTERS This article focuses on workplace preparedness for Covid-19 for those employers who are permitted to re-open their workplaces. It also deals with the practicalities of working from home and factors to...

President’s Speech: Lock Down Extended Until 30 April 2020   On the evening of 9 April 2020, President Ramaphosa addressed the Nation with an update of the way forward on the lock down in the country. The lock down is extended until 30 April 2020. Depending on...

THE COVID 19 PANDEMIC – TERS GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE UNDER TERS: PRACTICALLY, WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN FOR EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES   In Circular 1/2020 we wrote about the financial assistance government is providing, as well as the private funding that would be provided to...

GUIDELINES TO EMPLOYERS IN DEALING WITH THE IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC   This document is intended to communicate information on the impact of the Covid-19 virus on employers and employees in the workplace in South Africa. As a result of the Republic of...