Employers sometimes elect to demote employees when dismissal, as a disciplinary sanction, would have been justified and after a Disciplinary Hearing was conducted.  The demotion above cannot occur before the employer follows a fair procedure, and the employer is not allowed to enforce a demotion upon an employee in a partisan manner. Before the demotion is enforced, the employer must consult with the particular employee and afford them the opportunity to make representations regarding the...

The Basic Conditions of Employment Act of 1997 (the BCEA) states the following: Section 43 - Prohibition of employment of children: Who is under 15 years of age; orWho is under the minimum school-leaving age in terms of any law, if this is 15 or older.That is inappropriate for a person of that age;That places the child’s well-being, education, physical or mental health, or spiritual, moral or social development at risk. A person who employs a child in contravention of subsection (1) or (2)...

Registered trade unions that wish to obtain any organisational rights in terms of the Labour Relations Act (LRA) 66 of 1995 need to notify the employer of this intention. Section 21(1) and (2) of the LRA states that this notification needs to comply with the following requirements: It needs to be in writing;It must specify the workplace for which the trade union seek to exercise its rights;The representativeness of the trade union and facts relied upon to demonstrate that it is a...

The law generally states that employers must have a reasonable basis to search, and confine the search to non-personal items. Visitation of personal items, like handbags, generally cannot be searched unless the employer has a valid reason to do so. The employer must have reasonable doubt that the employee is dishonest or has contravened the code of conduct in the workplace. Nothing in our law prevents an employer from adopting a workplace policy that enables the employer to search the employee...

No law in our legal system obliges an employer to provide character evidence for a former employee when the employment relationship ends, nor does any law preclude an employer from providing reference comments to a prospective employer who enquires. Nothing thus precludes a former employer from making negative comments provided it is true, accurate and relevant. In Van Niekerk v Minister of Labour and others (1996) 17 ILJ 525 (C), the court held that an individual has the right to a...

Section 29 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (hereafter BCEA) states that the employer must supply the employee with particulars of employment in writing. Section 29 of the BCEA states further that if the employee does not understand the written particulars of employment, the employer must ensure that the particulars are explained to the employee in a language and in a manner that the employee understands. There are benefits to having a written contract of employment in the workplace...