The Disciplinary Enquiry – The Chairperson The chairperson carries considerable responsibilities in respect of the disciplinary enquiry: in essence, he or she is responsible for seeing that the pre-dismissal procedures are followed and that the employee is given a fair opportunity to respond to the allegations made by the employer. Not only this, but the chairperson must also keep control of the process and importantly, keep his or her cool. […]
What Happens when Shop Steward Becomes a Manager What happens if a shop steward is promoted to a managerial rank? May the employer demand that the employee give up his or her position as a shop steward? We don’t often think of a manager also being a shop steward it would mean that the employee has divided loyalties and may find himself or herself in a tough conflict of interests. A […]
Firstly, it is necessary to understand that there is no statutory requirement to pay bonuses of any sort, and any such payments that are made are not regulated by labour legislation. Generally, if the bonus is guaranteed such as into being a guaranteed payment stipulated in the employment contract then the employer is not left with much choice he must pay. However, where the payment of the bonus is dependent […]
About Incompatibility at Work Incompatibility is a form of incapacity it lies in the fact that the employee is capable of maintaining harmonious working relationships with his or her colleagues. The fact that incompatibility at work is seen as a form of incapacity means that the substantive and procedural requirements for an incapacity dismissal, as set out in Schedule 8 of the Labour Relations Act (the Code of Good Practice: […]
About Transfers and Dismissals The 2002 amendments to the Labour Relations Act introduced a new form of automatically unfair dismissal if the reason for the dismissal is a transfer from one employer to another, or if the reason for the dismissal relates to the transfer. The question arose as to when section 197 of the LRA comes into play. Section 197 is triggered only once the new employer takes control […]
Workers who picket in support of a protected strike would like to be up-front and very visible to make the greatest impact even to attract media attention. This is, after all, what the picket is about: to communicate demands and grievances. The employer wants exactly the opposite to hide the picketers away as far as possible from the eyes of customers, traffic and the media. These two conflicting interest present […]
An employee may be suspended pending a disciplinary enquiry this is to make sure that the employee does not intimidate potential witnesses or that the employee does not interfere in the investigation of the misconduct allegations. Some cases a suspension without a pay may be justified as a disciplinary sanction instead of dismissal. And if the employer decides to suspend an employee instead of dismissing him or her, the arbitrator […]
Medical Examinations and Harassment Sometimes, a really thorough medical examination can be embarrassing and pretty uncomfortable, especially if the doctor requires the employee to undress for part of the examination. In a recent CCMA arbitration, the question arose whether the employee, a part-time medical doctor, crossed the line between a medical examination and sexual harassment. A number of employees indicated that they were uncomfortable with the way in which they […]
About Conducting Arbitration Proceedings The arbitrator must see to it that all the relevant issues are canvassed and that the matter is properly heard; that each party is given a fair opportunity to present its case and that he or she retains his or her objectivity and neutrality. While it is clear that a commissioner or arbitrator may take either an adversarial or inquisitorial approach, the fact remains that the […]
Can shop stewards sign an agreement concluded with an employer and thereby bind the union as a whole? This interesting question arose in a recent CCMA arbitration award, and the CCMA commissioner held that the agreement was indeed valid the employer had not raised the issue of the shop stewards’ authority of the time and the owner of the business had been only too happy to sign the agreement. It […]
