Tag: Labour Court

On 12 November 2021, the Constitutional Court held in favour of mining employers in a historic secondary strike judgment (Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union and Others v Anglo Gold Ashanti Limited t/a Anglo Gold Ashanti and Others [2021] ZACC 42).

A recent judgement by the Labour Court addresses the role that incapacity can play when an employee is charged with misconduct, and whether an employer is required to exclude the possibility of incapacity in these circumstances.

Despite South Africa’s employment equity legislation, the biases and discrimination that characterised the ‘old South Africa’ still exists in the hearts and minds of many people. Such unfair discrimination could include, but is not limited to, discrimination on arbitrary or subjective grounds such as race, gender, family responsibility, religion, age, disability, opinion, and trade union affiliation.

The prohibition of religious, cultural, or political clothing and other symbols in the workplace is not a new topic facing employers in South Africa, but can this be a justifiable basis for discrimination in a post-COVID-19 return to work process?

The cost to the employer can include hearings at CCMA, Labour Court and Labour Appeal Court as well as back pay.

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.

Since March 2020, South Africans have had to comply with various COVID-19 restrictions implemented by the government to contain the spread of the virus. To this end, businesses have dealt with limitations on capacity and their operational hours, while patrons must meet face mask and sanitisation requirements.

In a recent judgment, Joseph v Killarney Engineering (Pty) Ltd and others (JR 586 18), the Labour Court found that it did not have jurisdiction to determine review proceedings for a liquidated company if the person who instituted the legal proceedings failed to deliver the necessary notice to the liquidators.

As with any change in life, the longer it persists, the more we relax into it in order to find some sense of normalcy to continue with our lives. But relaxing into COVID-19 and becoming blasé about protocol is simply not an option until we have achieved immunity as a nation.

It’s month-end. Your employee gets a notification on their phone that their salary has cleared into their bank account. Jackpot! They’ve received more than what is due to them. Mistakes and human miscalculations can occur easily, leaving employers in a difficult position. How should you address a genuine mistake that has been made resulting in employees receiving payments that they have not earned?