Gross dishonesty Dishonesty in the employment context can take various forms, including theft, fraud and other forms of dishonesty. Theft is regarded by the labour courts as one of the most serious forms of disciplinary offence, normally justifying dismissal first instance, regardless of the value of the property involved, the employee’s length of service, the absence of prior warnings, or whether the employee subsequently returned the property. As in all […]
Understanding Sanctions and Warnings in the Workplace Disciplinary penalties in the workplace must be applied progressively, i.e. lighter sanctions should be applied in the case of a first offence, and graver sanctions reserved for repetitions. Understanding General Warnings General warnings are frequently used to signal to all employees that the employer intends to take action against forms of misconduct (e.g. absenteeism) that might have been condoned in the past. Understanding […]
All employees who work for more than 24 hours a month for an employer are entitled to the notice of termination provided for in their contracts or, if no notice period is provided, to at least one week’s notice if the employee has been employed for six months or less; two weeks’ notice if the employee has been employed for more than six months but not more than a year; […]
Sunday work must be remunerated at double the normal rate for each hour worked by the employee, or at time and a half if the employee ordinarily works on a Sunday. If the greater part of a shift falls on a Sunday, the whole of that shift is deemed Sunday work. Except when employees agree to the contrary, employers may not require employees to work on proclaimed public holidays. Employees […]
More on the workplace law: Maximum hours In terms of the BCEA, and subject to certain exceptions mentioned below, no employer may require or permit an employee to work longer than 45 hours a week, or nine hours a day if the employee works five days or fewer per week, and eight hours per day if the employee works more than five days a week. All work beyond that is […]
STATUTORY ARBITRATION Con-arb An amendment to the LRA now permits councils and the CCMA to arbitrate disputes immediately if conciliation fails. The process of ‘con-arb’ has potential dangers. For one, the same commissioner must necessarily act as both conciliator and arbitrator, meaning that, when acting in the latter capacity, he or she may have been privy to compromising information received when acting in the former capacity. This may render the […]
WHAT IS CONCILIATION Conciliation is a process under the direction of a commissioner in which parties endeavour to reach an agreement with a view to settling a dispute. Conciliating commissioners cannot compel parties to settle; at most they can offer advice, which the parties are free to accept or reject. Conciliation need not actually take place before the conciliating commissioner issues a certificate. Must a matter actually be conciliated? The […]
If a transfer of a business takes place, a) the new employer is automatically substituted in the place of the old employer in respect of all contracts of employment in existence immediately before the date of transfer; b) all the rights and obligations between the old employer and an employee at the time of the transfer continue in force as if they had been rights and obligations between the new […]
The test for the substantive fairness of a dismissal for incompatibility may be formulated as follows: • Did the employee’s conduct cause disharmony or tension in the work place? • Was the disharmony and tension the result of the employee’s behavior? • Was the disharmony and/ or tension irremediable? • Did the disharmony and/ or tension have an adverse or potentially adverse effect on the employer’s business? • Was the […]
1. If the Labour Court or an arbitrator appointed in terms of this Act finds that a dismissal is unfair, the Court or the arbitrator may a) order the employer to reinstate the employee from any date, not earlier than the date of dismissal; b) order the employer to re-employ the employee, either in the work in which the employee was employed before the dismissal or in any other reasonably […]
