Tag: Labour Court

The issue arose as to whether the dismissal of an employee who refused to work contractually agreed upon days due to the tenets of her religious convictions was automatically unfair?

Times are tough. A number of factors such as the increasing petrol price, the impending new minimum wage and ever more competitive business landscape, have many companies feeling the pinch and exploring creative ways to minimise costs and maximise profits.

In a judgment handed down by the Constitutional Court on 13 September 2018, in the case of Duncanmec (Pty) Limited v Gaylard N.O. and Others [2018] ZACC 29, the court was faced with the question as to whether employees who sang a racially offensive struggle song during a peaceful strike should be dismissed.

In the case of Jabari vs Telkom SA (Pty) Ltd (2006, 10 BLLR 924) the Labour Court highlighted three characteristics of incompatibility: Firstly - Incompatibility refers to the employee’s 'inability or failure to maintain cordial and harmonious relationships with his peers', secondly - Incompatibility is a form of 'incapacity', and thirdly - Incompatibility is an 'amorphous, nebulous concept, based on subjective value judgments'.

The sharing economy (i.e. the community based on-line market) continues to expand at a rapid pace throughout a broad range of industries with Uber and Taxify dominating the taxi/ private vehicle hiring industry and Airbnb now the largest hotel accommodation and hospitality service in the world.

The Labour Court in South Africa recently considered whether a promotion nullified an original restraint of trade and other novel arguments raised by an employee who wanted to escape liability under a restrictive covenant contained in his employment contract.

The Labour Court delivered its judgment in the matter of SATAWU and Others v Sihlangene Security & Cleaning CC and Another, whereby the court showed its displeasure for a complete absence of prior procedure followed when dismissing employees. This judgment offers a stern reminder to employers to ensure that dismissals are effected not only for a fair reason, but also in accordance with a fair procedure. Failure to do so may result in a hefty compensation award coupled with a cost order.

Is the money spent on procuring and retaining employee skills an expense or an investment? Either way, employee costs are most often amongst the biggest if not the very biggest.

Sexual harassment in the workplace may have serious implications for the employer extending beyond bad publicity, to the possibility of financial liability for the conduct of its employees. Employers beware that he who acts through another is deemed to act himself – even in cases of sexual harassment.

Your social media posts, as well your comments and likes on other people’s posts, can be liked or shared and can easily make their way to your employer. A racist comment made on social media is very serious and it is potentially accessible to hundreds, if not thousands, of other social media users. Even if the post is deleted, once it is shared or if some has taken a screen shot, it can continue circulating on social media or the internet.