Presiding officers in disciplinary hearings are often laypersons, and their decisions must be viewed in that light. In the recent matter of Department of Health, Western Cape v Twalo and Another [2022] 8 BLLR 741 (LC), the Labour Court held that it is not necessarily reviewable if a commissioner or presiding officer cannot give reasons and especially if the decision follows findings already made in the award or ruling or are self-explanatory. Decisions lacking reasons so that the rationale...

Derivative misconduct is a term used when an employee knows of misconduct, for example, theft, and does not inform the employer. Such an employee may be dismissed for such misconduct. Derivative misconduct, therefore, arises when an employee possesses information that would enable an employer to identify wrongdoers in the workplace, but they fail to come forward. The burden of proof on an employer to justify dismissal relying on such conduct is, however, nothing but easy. The Constitutional...

Annual leave and its accrual thereof has always been subject to misunderstanding and controversy. Employers in the past have allowed staff to accrue an indefinite amount of leave. In some instances, employers allowed employees to sell leave days as same may have benefited the business. The differing views and the application of the provisions in the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997 has lead us to answer the question mentioned above: how much annual leave is an employee allowed to...

Chapter two of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act regulates working hours and overtime. The regulations do not apply to the following: Senior managerial employees;Employees engaged as sales staff who travel to the premises of customers and who regulate their own hours of work;Employees who work less than 24 hours a month for an employer. Every employer in South Africa must regulate the working time of each employee; Under the provisions of any Act governing occupational health and...

Sadly, some pregnancies end in miscarriages or stillbirths.  Employers are often confused about how to assist employees who suffer a miscarriage and are unsure what leave these employees would be entitled to. The Basic Conditions of Employment Act Section 25 deals with Maternity leave and stipulates as follows: An employee is entitled to at least four consecutive months' maternity leave, normally unpaid and claimed from UIF, unless there is an agreement for paid leave in place. They may...