Tag: employment termination

A recent Labour Court judgment confirms that where employers fail to properly address grievances or mitigate the cause of an employee’s complaint, a constructive dismissal claim may succeed. In Makombe vs Cape Conference of the Seventh Day Adventists and Others, the Labour Court found that a pastor employed by the Cape Conference of Seventh Day Adventists (Cape Conference) experienced constructive dismissal.

In the coming weeks, South Africans of various faiths will observe significant religious holidays, including Easter. The tension between religious beliefs and workplace demands can cause issues for both employers and employees. These issues arise especially if job requirements are not explicitly and clearly stated in an employment contract.

In Bithrey vs Department of Health, Gauteng (Lex Info, 7 October 2024, Case number JR1478/22, Labour Court), Bithrey worked as a registrar. The employer appointed her to perform clinical work at one of its hospitals. It also required her to enroll at Pretoria University for a period of five years.

In many cases when employers hire executive level, management or key employees, there is a recognition that these hires can impact the success of the business, due to the individual's recognition in their industry, or knowledge and experience, or client and customer relationships, or a combination of all of these qualities.

Hiring employees who misrepresent their qualifications can be a costly mistake for employers. Not only does it damage the reputation of the company, but it can also lead to a loss of productivity and profits. Fortunately, employers have legal recourse when an employee has misrepresented their qualifications during the hiring process, including claiming back remuneration.

Once an employee has resigned the employee cannot withdraw the resignation unless the employer consents thereto. This consent must be given prior to the expiry of the employee’s notice period when the resignation becomes effective, failing which a fresh agreement of employment will have to be concluded.

Now in its second revised edition, Labour Law in Practice has sold over 10,000 copies and has helped numerous South African managers and business owners navigate their way safely through what sometimes seems to be an impenetrable maze of labour law and practice.

In Employment Contracts for The New World of Work, the authors discuss employment issues as they relate to the ‘new normal’, including topics such as remote and hybrid working, and the effect this has had on managerial control and authority.

An employer cannot unilaterally change an employee’s retirement age. Should the employer do so and terminate the employee’s employment, the dismissal may constitute an automatically unfair dismissal and amount to unfair discrimination.

The issue is whether an employer may utilise Zoom when conducting consultations in a retrenchment exercise. If not, does the continuation of the consultations in such circumstances result in procedural unfairness? The Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 (LRA) does not regulate how section 189 consultations are to be held (i.e. in person or via video conference).