On 23 March 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa took a drastic and unprecedented step by declaring a nationwide lock-down set to begin at 23h59 on Thursday and end on 16 April 2020 in an attempt to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Who will be affected?
The lock-down will affect everyone and nobody will be allowed to leave their homes for 21 days, unless under strictly controlled circumstances as indicated by the President. An exception applies to people working in the essential services industry. A confirmation has not been received as to exactly which businesses will be regarded as essential.
Benefits payable during the shutdown period
Workers who are affected by the 21-day lockdown will mainly be supported by the Department of Employment and Labour. During the closure of any business, employers should consider implementing measures such as laying-off employees or allowing them to take their annual leave. During the lock-down period, depending on the action taken by the employer, existing UIF benefits for illness, reduced working time and unemployment will come into effect.
Where employers decided to implement reduced working hours (lay-off), affected employees will be compensated through the new “National Disaster Benefit” under the unemployment insurance fund. This benefit will be de-linked from the UIF’s normal benefit structure and this benefit will be a flat rate equal to the minimum wage (R3500) per employee for the duration of the shutdown to a maximum period of three months.
The following documents will be required when such submission is made:
UI19 and UI2.7 (completed by the employer);
UI2.1;
UI2.8;
Letter from the employer confirming reduced working hours is due to the coronavirus;
Copy of the employee’s ID.
Working from home
In circumstances where employees can be accommodated to work from home, employers should implement policies & procedures to regulate such an arrangement. Employees should have a clear understanding of both the hours to be worked and the level of performance required and that disciplinary action can be taken for non-compliance of such arrangement. Employers will have to closely monitor their employees as some employee might attempt to abuse such an arrangement.
TERS (Temporary Employer / Employee relief scheme)
A proposal for special dispensation for companies in distress because of COVID19 has been put forward. The TERS programme will be expanded and expedited to assist distressed companies in the form of subsidies to fund workers’ wages. One of the conditions is that the company embarks upon a turnaround or sustainability programme. This process will be overseen by the CCMA and is usually an alternative to retrenchment. To obtain an application form and all relevant details, please send an email to info@labour.gov.za.
Should you require any further assistance and/or require any other Labour related advice, please contact your nearest SEESA office.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hendrik van Niekerk obtained his LLB degree from the University of Pretoria in 2008 and was admitted as an attorney in 2010. He joined SEESA Pretoria on 1 April 2010 as a Legal Advisor and was promoted to a Senior Legal Advisor in 2012.