Employment and Labour Law

29
Oct

Employees on Probation: Can You Dismiss for Poor Performance?

Article courtesy of Law Dot News Business Law - Employees on Probation: Can You Dismiss for Poor Performance? “… arbitrators should hesitate to interfere with employer’s decisions on whether probationary employees have attained the required performance standard, or with the standards themselves” (extract from judgment below) Our laws allow employers to hire new employees on a probationary basis, and doing
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28
Aug

What is Poor Work Performance? A Case of Missed Sales Targets

“…the employer has a duty to investigate all possible alternatives short of dismissal, and this duty accords with the onus of proving the fairness of the dismissal” (extract from judgment below) An employee who fails to perform adequately at work is by definition not fulfilling his or her side of the employment bargain, but that doesn’t mean that dismissal is

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26
Jun

Employers: What is Your Duty to Accommodate Religious Beliefs?

“The employer has a duty to reasonably accommodate an employee’s religious freedom unless it is impossible to do so without causing itself undue hardship. It is not enough that it may have a legitimate commercial rationale. The duty of reasonable accommodation imposed on the employer is one of modification or adjustment to a job or the working environment that will

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29
May

Equal Pay for Equal Work – Can You Differentiate Without Unfairly Discriminating?

Article courtesy of Law Dot News Labour Law - Equal Pay for Equal Work “Prohibition of unfair discrimination: No person may unfairly discriminate, directly or indirectly, against an employee, in any employment policy or practice, on one or more grounds, including race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, family responsibility, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, HIV
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29
Apr

Expats and Employers: Plan Now For the New Expat Tax Changes

“An income tax form is like a laundry list – either way you lose your shirt” (Comedian Fred Allen) This article is important to you if you are either a South African working abroad or an employer of one. If you don’t fall into either of those categories, but know someone who does, please think of passing this on. As an

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27
Mar

Losing Your Licence with AARTO Demerits: More Danger than You Thought, and The Wheels are Turning

“The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status, or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we all believe that we are above-average drivers” (humourist Dave Barry)  AARTO (the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act) has been partially in force for years, but its demerit provisions have been on ice for so long

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27
Feb

Employers: When Should You Sue Rogue Employees? A R33m Example

Article courtesy of Law Dot News “It is the duty of an employee when rendering his or her services always to act exclusively in the interest of the employer … an employee is not entitled to use his or her employment relationship with the employer without the employer’s permission to make a profit or earn commission for his or her
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7
Jan

Paternity Leave & Minimum Wages – How Will The New Laws Affect You?

Article courtesy of Law Dot News Employers and employees need to know about four new Acts which will usher in  important changes to our labour laws. The summary below is a short one of only those changes likely to affect a significant number of people and businesses, so take advice on your specific circumstances. In a nutshell – Parental leave
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30
Oct

It’s “13th Cheque” Time Again: Must You Pay Annual Bonuses?

Article Care of Law Dot News Once again November is upon us, and no doubt employees around the country are starting to dream of all the good things they can do with that “Christmas” bonus coming their way. If you are one of them perhaps you plan to pay off debt or to re-charge the family’s batteries with a special
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25
Sep

The cost of litigation – What does it mean?

By: Sean Bosse The Cost of Litigation The very nature of business and our commercial interactions with each other means that the ground is always fertile for disputes to arise. In cases of dispute that cannot be resolved between the parties on an amicable basis, either one or both parties may proceed to have the dispute referred to court for
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