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South Africans were expecting that a national minimum wage (NMW) would be implemented on 1 May 2018. This did not happen, but the NMW is still likely to be implemented during the course of this year. We can also expect some other changes to labour legislation. How will this affect employers and employees?
Question: Is a statement of intent by an employee to resign enough to terminate employment?
An employee could claim additional compensation if a suspension is regarded as being unfair. In a well-publicised case, the CCMA awarded an employee five months’ remuneration in addition to the normal pay that the employee received while on suspension.
May an employer deviate from disciplinary procedures in misconduct cases?
The potential impact of the drought on the employment relationship should not be underestimated. It may affect the employee’s right to remuneration if it becomes impossible for employees to work, but it may also lead to problems with employee attendance if employees have to queue for water.
An employee resigns with immediate effect after receiving notice of a disciplinary hearing. May the employer proceed with disciplinary action?
Some businesses need water in order to function. The prevailing drought in the Western Cape has led to unpredictable interruptions due to the implementation of water rationing measures. Interruptions to water supply can also be due to a variety of other reasons. Contingency plans may be inadequate, which may result in employees not being able to work
Does setting sales targets make it easier to dismiss an employee for poor work performance?
Are Uber drivers independent contractors or employees?
Special care must be taken before dismissing an employee due to disability. What guidelines should one follow if there’s doubt?
May an employer make deductions for damage or loss caused by employee?
The Labour Relations Act protects employees against unfair dismissal. However, our law makes allowance for a contract of employment coming to an end without it amounting to a dismissal.
The distinction between incapacity due to ill health (‘medical incapacity’) and disability is from both a practical and legal perspective one of the most difficult situations for an employer to manage.
In certain exceptional circumstances it is acceptable for an employer to rely on written statements only in a disciplinary hearing.
There could be several reasons for employers ending up having ‘illegal’ foreigners in their employ. The illegal employment of a foreigner is expressly prohibited by the Immigration Act. What does an employer do if a work permit is due to expire, or has already expired?
Arbitrators will look at the following factors when deciding whether or not a dismissal for ill health was fair.
Much has been said of “the right to remain silent”. It may be raised by a defendant in criminal law, but does it mean anything in the employment relationship?
The issue of ‘plea bargaining’ arises where there are several perpetrators involved in a disciplinary transgression. The employer needs one or more co-perpetrators to give evidence at the disciplinary hearing. Can one agree to a lesser sanction in return for his testimony against the alleged accomplices?
Wilful and persistent refusal to carry out an instruction often results in summary dismissal. It becomes trickier if the employee has a good reason not to follow the instruction. So, what is a good reason to refuse to work?
May employees on probation be dismissed for lesser forms of misconduct?
Earning extra money outside of working hours (also referred to as ‘moonlighting’) may sound like a good idea. But what if the employer objects?
Where employees don’t do what is expected of them, the employer is often faced with a practical dilemma: Do I treat this as misconduct or incapacity?
How high may the employer set the bar when it comes to discipline in the workplace– may a zero tolerance approach be implemented?
The assumption is often made that people who do volunteer work are not employees. But are volunteers protected by labour legislation?
Social media has become a powerful communication tool, but using it can have far-reaching consequences. Can employees be dismissed for expressing their personal opinions outside the workplace and outside of working hours?
Drafting a proper disciplinary notice can be frustrating. Many employers would simply pass the responsibility to external advisors. Yet, provided a few fundamentals are taken care of, there is no reason why managers could not do it themselves and leave only the most complicated cases for external parties to assist with.
As a rule employers should give newly-appointed employees some time to settle in before deciding on their suitability for the job. But would it be fair to expect an employee appointed to a high level job to ‘hit the ground running’?
Time spent travelling between clients and the workplace during the working day would normally be regarded as working time. But what about time spent travelling to work, or time spent at the workplace before commencing with normal daily tasks?
Until recently, our labour legislation has made no reference to part-time employment. What has gone almost unnoticed is the specific introduction of the protection of employees that are employed on a part-time basis in contrast to fixed term contracting that has received a lot of publicity recently.
There is nothing in our law that prevents an employer from adopting a workplace policy that requires employees to submit to tests or allow themselves and their belongings to be searched.