Tag: Werksmans Attorneys

South Africa is sitting on a growing backlog of mature private equity assets. Managers cannot exit them, and investors cannot access them. The global solution already exists, but we are not using it yet. Exits depend on a cooperative stock exchange, willing trade buyers and investors patient enough to wait out a fund’s full life.

The Public Procurement Act 28 of 2024 is signed but not yet in force. However, the Constitutional Court is yet to rule on a challenge by the Western Cape Government, the City of Cape Town and amaBhungane. They argue that Parliament failed to facilitate reasonable public participation on material amendments, as required by section 59(1)(a) of the Constitution. That judgment is still pending.

The CEO of South Africa's highest-paying JSE-listed company earns more than 6,000 times the national minimum wage, according to data published by the Labour Research Service. Across the top 20 JSE-listed employers by CEO pay, every company exceeds 939 times that benchmark.

South Africa’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition published revised merger notification thresholds and filing fees under the Competition Act 89 of 1998 (Competition Act). These changes take effect on 1 May 2026. The updated thresholds raise turnover and asset values. These values determine whether a transaction qualifies as a small, intermediate or large merger. As a result, some deals previously requiring mandatory notification may now fall below the filing threshold.

The Labour Appeal Court decision in Backsports (Pty) Ltd vs Motlhanke and another offers a useful reminder. Dismissal does not mark the end of an employer’s rights. This remains true where a restraint of trade was carefully agreed and clearly breached. For employers, the judgment reinforces several important lessons about enforcement, evidence and the limits of sympathy-based reasoning. In other words, it offers clarity in disputes that often resemble the fired and the furious, where emotions run high after termination.

When you run your work as a business, invoice for your services, and elect to skip the obligations that come with being an employee, you cannot turn around and claim employee protection when the relationship ends. 

South Africa's construction industry is in a tough spot. Output shrank by 4.2% in 2024, capping a decade-long slide that began around 2009, with the sector's GDP contribution down over 30% since then. Like the broader economy, it is battling low growth and inflation. But as one of the nation's top carbon emitters, buildings and construction alone risk doubling emissions by 2050 without action.

South Africa’s new Code of Good Practice: Dismissal took effect, replacing the previous codes on dismissal and operational requirements. The new dismissal code, guided by the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 (LRA), offers employers practical guidance on handling dismissals related to misconduct, incapacity and retrenchments.

In the recent case of SMD Technologies (Pty) Ltd v Tavares and Another ([2024] ZALCJHB 546), the Labour Court upheld the enforceability of restraint of trade agreements in South African employment law. The court emphasised that these restraints must be reasonable and must protect legitimate business interests.

South Africa stands at a pivotal moment. Two months ago, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) unveiled a draft Transformation Fund Concept Document. This announcement sparked a bold conversation about the future of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE).