Labour Law

On 17 February 2025, the Department of Employment and Labour (DoEL), held a virtual meeting where various stakeholders and industry players met to discuss and engage on, inter alia, the employment equity sector targets for the Professional, Scientific and Technical Sector. 

With effect from 1 March 2025, the national minimum wage will be adjusted to R28.79 for each ordinary hour worked. This marks an increase of 4.39% from R27.58 in 2024.  This adjusted national minimum wage applies equally to farm workers and domestic workers, who until 2022 had a differentiated national minimum wage.

Section 186 of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 19965 ("LRA") is a foundational section of South African labour legislation insofar as it sets out what it means for an employee to be dismissed, and when conduct on the part of an employer will constitute an unfair labour practice.

Welcome to our weekly edition of our series on educational Labour Relations Topics. We hope that you will enjoy the content and that it is informative. In this week’s edition of our series on Labour Relations Topics we delve into the legal requirements of an employment contract. 

The President of the Republic of South Africa has recently proclaimed that the Employment Equity Amendment Act No.4 of 2022 (EEAA) shall come into operation on 1 January 2025.

In the case of Enever v Barloworld Equipment South Africa, A Division of Barloworld South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Labour Appeal Court (LAC) had to determine whether the Constitutional Court's decision in Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development and Others v Prince (Prince), in which the Court decided that the criminal prohibition of the cultivation, possession and use of Cannabis in one's own home is a violation of the right to privacy, would have any effect on workplace discipline following a positive cannabis test. 

There are several unfair methods that might be used at disciplinary hearings, appeal hearings and arbitration hearings. These unsavoury tactics include the falsification of documents, the influencing of witnesses, illegal entrapment, coercing employees to make admissions or confessions and tampering with audio and video tapes. 

South African law does not allow employers to sue employees at the CCMA or Labour courts. In fact, it is clear that labour legislation and its enforcement structures are there to protect employees, often at the cost of employers.

On 1 March 2024, the national minimum wage increased by 8.5 percent from R25.42 to R27.58 per ordinary hour worked. But is it enough?

Carrying a weapon during a strike action at your work premises could potentially be a fireable offence. A recent court case, Pailpac (Pty) Ltd v De Beer N.O and Others, confirmed that employees can be dismissed for having dangerous weapons during a strike and on company property.

The Labour Relations Act provides for fixed-term employees to have a reasonable expectation of renewal of their contracts at the expiry date. In addition, the Act, together with case law has narrowed those circumstances under which an employment agreement can legitimately be accepted as a limited duration contract. 

Breast milk has long been acknowledged as nature’s perfect food for infants. Its unique properties continue to benefit children long after their mothers have stopped breastfeeding.

It is a major challenge for employers to distinguish between employees who are genuinely sick from those who are malingering. The Labour Relations Act (LRA) requires that employer’s may consider dismissing employees incapacitated by illness or injury only as a last resort. 

Important labour legislation applies to circumstances where a business or part thereof is transferred by one employer to another as a going concern. That is, section 197 of the Labour Relations Act (LRA) forces the new entity to take over all the employees of the old undertaking. 

It is well known that South Africa’s Constitution, the Equality act and the Employment Equity Act, all render racism unlawful. Despite this powerful and well publicised legislation and society’s repugnancy for racist behaviour, the biases and unfair discrimination that characterised the ‘old South Africa’ still exist in the hearts and minds of many people.

Unemployment can be a huge burden depending on its underlying circumstances, lodging a UIF claim is thus the best course of action provided you are a registered contributor. But what do you do when your claim is rejected?

The ability to get away with breaking the law has encouraged many employers to mistreat undocumented foreign people employed by them. That is, employers have paid illegal immigrants low wages, deprived them of employee benefits and have dismissed them at will.

The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) in South Africa provides essential short-term financial assistance to individuals facing various employment-related circumstances. 

The Labour Relations Act (LRA) provides for employees who have been passed over for promotion to lodge an unfair labour practice dispute at the CCMA or at the relevant bargaining council. 

Often, when an employee has to stop working due to injury or illness, they may have to go without earning an income for the time period. Luckily, becoming ill or injured while at work can lead to you, as an employee, gaining some compensation.