IMPACT OF RECENT PAPER

LEGISLATION TOPIC

SDA - SKILLS DEVELOPMENT ACT

Purpose of the SDA
• Encourages businesses to improve the skills of new and existing workers.
• Invests in the education and training of the South African workforce.
• Purposefully redresses imbalances of the past through education and training.
• Improves the job prospects of previously disadvantaged people.

Impact of the SDA

 Increases the number of skilled employees with scarce skills.
 Improves the return on investment (ROI) in education and training
 The implementation of the SDA is time-consuming, expensive, prescriptive and
administratively burdensome.
 Businesses find it difficult to monitor/control the implementation of this Act.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the SDA

• Preventing qualified employees from gaining access to training opportunities and
learnerships.
• Preventing employees access to learnerships based on any discriminatory grounds such a
pregnancy, age, position, language, gender, sexual orientation, culture or religion.
• Promoting skills development unfairly, for example, where only certain employees’ benefit.
• Falsifying information in any documentation such as tax documentation submitted to SARS
and workplace skills plans

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the SDA

• Businesses that do not comply with the SDA may receive a compliance order from the
Labour Court. This order forces the business to comply with the SDA.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with the SDA may receive large fines and may be given
a jail sentence (imprisonment), which will be dependent on the severity of the non-
compliance.
• Businesses that do not pay the SDL may not offer learnerships to employees or claim
grants from the SDA.
• The business’s operating licence may be revoked, which may prevent the business from
continuing any form of operations.
Page 1 of 18
Ways in which a business can comply with the SDA

• Display a summary of the SDA in the business where it is visible to all employees.
• Provide opportunities to all employees to improve their skills.
• Assess the skills of employees to determine/ascertain the areas in which skills development
is needed.
• Employers who collect PAYE (Pay As You Earn tax) should register with SETA.

Role/Function of SETA

• register various learnerships and learning programmes.

• promote and establish various learnerships.
• approve the workplace skills plans and annual training reports submitted by businesses.
• develop/build skills development plans for the various economic sectors.

Funding of SETA

• Skills Development levies are paid by employers to SARS as a collecting agency for the
government.
• Donations/Grants received from the public/businesses/CSI programmes.
• Surplus funds from government institutions.
• Funds received from rendering their services.

Meaning of Learnerships

• Learnerships are theoretical/practical training opportunities that lead to a recognised

occupational qualification.
• It includes a training course with learning material as well as practical work experience.

National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS)

• Increases access to programmes that train people.
• Addresses the shortage of language and mathematical skills among the youth and adults.
• Increases/improves the skills of the public sector to improve service delivery.
• Builds career guidance.

Human Resources Development Strategy (HRDS)

• Improves the supply of skills, which benefits the country directly.
• Promotes social development/social justice and helps to reduce poverty.
• Addresses skills shortages in the South African workplace.
• Increases/encourages employee participation in lifelong learning.

Page 2 of 18
LRA – LABOUR RELATIONS ACT

Purpose of the LRA

• Provides an enabling framework and structure for labour relations between employees and
employers, trade unions and employer organisations.
• Promotes collective bargaining at the workplace/sectoral level
• Promotes fair labour practices between employers and employees.
• Established the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), Labour
Court and Labour Appeal Court.

Impact of the LRA

 Protects the rights of businesses and employer organisations in labour-related issues.

 Promotes quick and less expensive labour dispute resolutions
 The implementation of the LRA may be very costly and time-consuming – especially the
dispute resolution process.
 Decreased profitability of businesses because of a decline in productivity and sales.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the LRA

• Dismissing employees unfairly or illegally.

• Preventing employees from participating in legal strikes.
• Dismissing employees who participate in legal strikes.
• Preventing employees from forming and joining trade unions.

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the LRA

• Businesses that do not comply with the LRA may receive a compliance order from the
Labour Court that forces the business to comply.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with the LRA may receive large fines if they fail to meet
the agreements reached during the dispute resolution process.
• The business’s licence may be revoked, which may prevent the business from continuing
any form of operations.
• Businesses that fail to comply with the LRA may incur financial costs such as legal
fees/CCMA fees.

Page 3 of 18
Ways in which a business can comply with the LRA

• Display a summary of the LRA in the workplace where it is visible to all employees.
• Employees must be allowed to form trade unions and participate in trade union-related
activities or legal strikes.
• The establishment of workplace forums must be supported by employers.
• Any agreements made during collective bargaining should not be ignored employers.

Rights of EMPLOYERS in terms of LRA

• form employer organisations.

• dismiss employees who engage in unprotected strikes/misconduct such as violence or
intimidation during strike action.
• form bargaining councils for the purpose of collective bargaining.
• not remunerate employees who participate in protected strikes and for work that was not
completed during protected strikes.

Rights of EMPLOYEES in terms of LRA

• join a trade union of their choice.

• establish a workplace forum where a business has 100 or more employees to resolve work-
related issues.
• refer unresolved workplace disputes to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and
Arbitration (CCMA).
• refer unresolved CCMA disputes to the Labour Court for an appeal.

Page 4 of 18
EEA – EMPLOYMENT EQUITY ACT
Purpose of the EEA

• Ensures equal representation of all population groups of South Africa in the workplace
through the effective promotion and implementation of affirmative action.
• Advocates that employees who do work of the same or equal value must be paid equally.
• Promotes equal opportunity and fair treatment for all workers in the workplace.
• Prevents discrimination on the grounds of gender/race/disability in the workplace.

Impact of the EEA

 Encourages diversity in the business by employing people from various racial backgrounds.
 Encourages consultation between employers and employees.
 The implementation of the EEA is time-consuming, expensive, prescriptive and
administratively burdensome because employment equity reports must be submitted to the
Department of Labour every two years.
 Businesses find it difficult to make appointments because of the unsuitability of candidates,
which results in the position not being filled.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the EEA

• Denying people access to the workplace, based on the grounds of any form of
discrimination such as gender, race, culture, religion, language and gender.
• Treating workers unfairly and incorrectly promoting affirmative action in the workplace.
• Refusing to employ young women because they would choose to have children in the
future.
• Conducting HIV testing unless the testing is justified by the Labour Court.

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the EEA

• Businesses that do not comply with the EEA may receive a compliance order from the
Labour Court that forces the business to comply with the EEA.
• Businesses that do still not comply after the compliance order has been issued may then be
charged/prosecuted by the Labour Court for non-compliance.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with the EEA may receive large fines, which will be
dependent on the degree of non-compliance, especially in the context of fronting.
• Labour inspectors can visit the business and conduct interviews with employees to
determine whether the information supplied on the employment equity plans is true or has
been falsified.

Page 5 of 18
Ways in which a business can comply with the EEA

• Display a summary of the EEA in the workplace where it is visible to all employees.
• Provide equal opportunities to all employees in the workplace.
• Businesses should ensure that employees are paid equally for work of equal value.
• Implement affirmative action measures to promote diversity in the workplace

Page 6 of 18
BCEA – BASIC CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT ACT
Purpose of the BCEA

• Outlines clear terms and conditions of employment for employers and employees.
• Regulates and promotes the right to fair labour practices as outlined in the Constitution of
South Africa.
• Provides minimum requirements/standards for the creation of employment contracts.
• Advances the economic development and social justice of employees.

Provisions of the BCEA

• Hours of work / work hours

o Employees are not allowed to work for more than 45 hours per week.
o Employees may work 9 hours a day if they work five days or less per week.
o Employees may work 8 hours a day if they work more than five days a week.

• Overtime
o Employees cannot be forced to work overtime but must agree to work overtime.
o Employees cannot work more than 3 hours overtime per day, or 10 hours per week.
o 1½ times/One and a half times the normal rate of pay for overtime worked on
weekdays and Saturdays.
o 2 times/Twice/Double the normal rate of pay for overtime worked on Sundays
and public holidays.

• Meal breaks and rest periods

o Employees must have a meal break of 60 minutes after 5 continuous hours of work.
o The meal break can be reduced to 30 minutes/half an hour by a mutual written
agreement when employees work less than 6 hours per day.

• Termination of employment
o An employment contract may only be terminated following 1 weeks' notice if the
employee has been employed for 6 months or less.
o A minimum of 4 weeks' notice must be given to the business if the employee has
been employed for a year or longer.

• Child and forced labour

o It is illegal to employ a child younger than 15 in South Africa.
o It is also illegal to force an employee to work.
Page 7 of 18
• Public holidays
o Employees must be paid for any public holiday that falls on a working day.
o Employees may work on public holidays when there is a mutual agreement, and they
are paid 2 times/twice/double their normal rate.

• Leave
o Annual leave
▪ 21 consecutive days annual leave per year or 1 day for every 17 days
worked/1 hour for every 17 hours worked.
▪ An employer can only pay a worker in lieu/instead of granting leave if that
worker leaves the job/terminates the employment contract.

o Sick leave
▪ 30 days/6 weeks paid sick leave in a 3 year/36 months cycle.
▪ 1 day paid sick leave for 26 days worked during the rst 6 months of
employment.

o Maternity leave
▪ Pregnant employees are entitled to four consecutive months of maternity
leave.
▪ Pregnant employees are prevented from performing work that may be
hazardous to themselves and the unborn child.

o Parental leave
▪ An employee irrespective of gender, who is a parent, is entitled to 10
consecutive days parental leave after the birth of his/her child.
▪ Parental leave is unpaid but the employee/parent may claim from the
Unemployment Insurance Fund/UIF.

o Family responsibility leave

▪ An employee may receive 3 to 5 days paid leave per year on request, in the
event of the death of the employee’s spouse/life partner/parent/adoptive
parent/grandparent/child/adoptive child/grandchild/sibling.
▪ An employer may require reasonable proof – before approving this type of
leave such as a death certificate of the family member whose funeral will be
attended

Page 8 of 18
Impact of the BCEA

 Outlines the minimum/basic requirements for employment contracts.

 Specifies work hours to prevent exploitation of employees.
 The implementation of the BCEA is time-consuming, expensive, prescriptive and
administratively burdensome, especially the drafting of formal/legal contracts.
 Employers cannot hire cheap labour, and therefore cannot exploit employees.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the BCEA

• Forbidding employees to discuss remuneration/wages and salaries matters with other

workers.
• Preventing employees from gaining access to employment contracts.
• Preventing pregnant employees from legally taking maternity leave.
• Refusing acceptance of a valid medical certificate of a sick employee.

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the BCEA

• Businesses that do not comply with the BCEA may receive a compliance order from the
Labour Court, that forces the business to comply with the BCEA.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with the BCEA may receive large fines and may even be
given a jail sentence, which will be dependent on the severity of the non-compliance.
• Businesses may be taken to the Labour Court for a ruling.
• Labour inspectors may conduct investigations and inquiries about complaints in the context
of the BCEA and remove records as evidence.

Ways in which a business can comply with the BCEA

• Remunerate/pay employees for working overtime, as stipulated in the provisions of the

BCEA.
• Ensure that employees do not exceed the stipulated working hours of 45 hours per week.
• Provide maternity leave for pregnant employees.
• Allow sick employees to take off the required amount of sick leave i.e, six weeks in a 3 year
cycle.

Page 9 of 18
COIDA – COMPENSATION FOR OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES AND DISEASES
ACT
Purpose of the COIDA

• COIDA applies to all casual and full-time employees who become injured/disabled/killed
due to a workplace accident/disease.
• COIDA excludes employees who are guilty of wilful misconduct such as horseplay in the
workplace/employees working outside South Africa for at least twelve months/members of
the South African Defence Force/members of the Police Services.
• Employers make monthly contributions towards the Compensation Fund, which is based on
the number of employees in the workplace/the level of risk to which employees are
exposed.
• The type and severity of the injury will dictate the medical expenses and other
compensation that will be paid to employees.

Impact of the COIDA

 Promotes health and safety in the workplace.

 Creates an enabling framework for acceptable employment practices/safety regulations
 South Africans who are temporarily/permanently employed in foreign countries are not
covered by COIDA.
 COIDA does not cover employees in the South African National Defence Force.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the COIDA

• Bribing employees not to report the accident/injury based on the grounds of

race/religion/culture/language/gender/sexual orientation.
• Falsifying information about previous, serious accidents/occupational diseases on the
grounds of race/religion/culture/language/gender/sexual orientation.
• Failing to disclose all information to the Compensation Board when accidents or injuries
occur for specific employees.
• Refusing to lodge the claims of domestic workers.

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the COIDA

• Businesses that do not comply with COIDA may receive a compliance order from the
Labour Court, which forces the business to comply with COIDA.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with COIDA may receive large fines for refusing to lodge
claims and may even be given a jail sentence/imprisonment, which will be dependent on
the severity of the non-compliance.
• Businesses may be forced to pay recovery costs required by the compensation fund.
• Employees may take a business to court for not registering with the Commissioner of the
Compensation Fund.
Page 10 of 18
Ways in which a business can comply with the COIDA

• Display a summary of COIDA in the workplace where it is visible to all employees.

• Register with Compensation Board and Compensation Commissioner.
• Pay the required levies to the Compensation Fund.
• Report all accidents, injuries, illnesses and fatalities to the Compensation Commissioner as
they occur

Page 11 of 18
BBBEE – BROAD-BASED BLACK ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT ACT
Purpose of the BBBEE

• Enables wealth to be spread more broadly across all population groups.

• Aims at targeting inequality in the South African economy.
• Allows for the development of Codes of Good Practice.
• Increases the number of black people that manage/control South African businesses.

Difference between BEE and BBBEE

BEE BBBEE
A government policy that may not An Act that is enforced/must be
always be enforced. complied with by businesses.
Benefitted only a few previously Encourages a wider group of previously
disadvantaged people in the economy disadvantaged people – which
includes black women, people who
are physically challenged, youth, and
people in rural areas – to participate in
the economy.

BBBEE Pillars

1. Management control
Implications / Business must:
• Ensure that transformation is implemented at all levels.
• Appoint black people in senior executive positions/to management

2. Ownership
Implications / Business must:
• Include black people in shareholding/partnerships/franchises.
• Create more opportunities for black people to become owners and entrepreneurs.

3. Enterprise and supplier development (ESD)

Implications / Business must:
• Be encouraged to invest in and support black-owned Small Medium and Micro Enterprises
(SMMEs).
• Create jobs as ESD promotes and supports local manufacturing.

Page 12 of 18
 4. Skills Development
Implications / Business must:
• Engage/involve black employees in various skills development training programmes and
initiatives.
• Provide learnerships and learning programmes to black employees

5. Socio-economic development / Social responsibility

Implications / Business must:
• Contribute towards social investment projects and community development.
• Focus on critical areas of CSI such as development in the country, for example,
environmental awareness/education/housing/poverty/unemployment, and so on.

Impact of the BBBEE

 Businesses who are BBBEE-compliant will be rated high on the BBBEE scorecard/may get
government tenders/may attract other BBBEE business partners/suppliers.
 Encourages businesses to address the demands for redress/equity directly in the
workplace.
 The implementation of BBBEE is time-consuming, expensive, prescriptive and
administratively burdensome, especially attaining BBBEE Scorecard ratings and training of
employees.
 Some processes associated with BBBEE – if not monitored properly – may lead to
corruption/nepotism/cronyism.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the BBBEE

• Employers who fail to correctly implement affirmative action in the context of employment
equity to meet BBBEE responsibilities.
• Employers who promote unsuitable people into management positions at the expense of
qualified previously disadvantaged people.
• Employers who are deliberately involved in fronting, corruption, nepotism and cronyism, and
because of this, certain individuals benefit at the expense of other individuals.
• Refusing to award government tenders to BBBEE-compliant vendors

Page 13 of 18
Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the BBBEE

• Businesses that do not comply with BBBEE may receive a compliance order from the
Labour Court, which forces the business to comply with BBBEE.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with BBBEE may receive large fines for fronting
practices and may even be given a jail sentence (imprisonment), which will be dependent
on the severity of the non-compliance.
• Businesses may be fi ned with a penalty of up to 10% of the annual turnover of businesses.
• The state may decide not to renew business licences, revoke the business licence, or
refuse to grant authorisations to conduct business activities.

Ways in which a business can comply with the BBBEE

• Businesses need to find all means to achieve the requirements of the five BBBEE pillars,
such as promoting affirmative action when making appointments.
• Conduct regular skills development training with black employees.
• Sell shares to more black individuals within and outside the organisation.
• Appoint and promote more black employees into managerial positions.

Page 14 of 18
NCA – NATIONAL CREDIT ACT
Purpose of the NCA

• Promotes the social and financial interests of South African consumers, and by extension
the South African economy.
• Ensures that consumers of credit are well informed about the details included in their credit
contracts.
• Promotes the responsible granting of credit by credit providers.
• Ensures that credit is equally available to all qualifying consumers.

Impact of the NCA

 The NCA protects businesses against non-paying customers.

 Businesses that are authorised credit providers may attract more consumers.
 Businesses/credit providers cannot collect a debt from consumers who are under debt
review.
 Businesses that grant credit recklessly cannot recover the debt.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the NCA

• Refusing to grant consumers credit based on any form of discrimination such as race,
gender, age, religion, language, culture, sexual orientation.
• Charging different interest rates to different consumers based on discriminatory grounds
such as race, gender, age, religion, language, culture, sexual orientation.
• Granting credit recklessly to consumers and failing to explain the credit contract to
consumers.
• Blacklisting customers without exhausting all efforts to recover the debt from the consumer.

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the NCA

• The National Credit Regulator (NCR) may impose a fine/penalty on the business for non-
compliance.
• Businesses/credit providers may not charge any fee/interest/other charges under that
specific credit agreement.
• The court may declare the granting of credit by the business as reckless, and may order
consumers not to repay the credit/or part thereof to the business.
• Businesses may not demand payment, sue or attach the clients/consumer’s salaries/assets
to repay debt.

Page 15 of 18
Ways in which a business can comply with the NCA

• Conduct credit checks with a registered credit bureau and/or consult the National Credit
Register.
• Register the business with the National Credit Regulator (NCR).
• Submit annual compliance reports to the NCR.
• Conduct affordability assessments to ensure that consumers can meet their obligations.

Rights of CONSUMERS in terms of NCA

• apply for credit and to be free from discrimination of any form.

• obtain reasons for credit being refused by credit providers.
• receive protection of their personal information.
• receive information in plain and understandable language

Page 16 of 18
CPA – CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT

Purpose of the CPA

• Promotes fair/accessible and sustainable places for producers to sell their products.
• Promotes responsible consumer behaviour amongst consumers.
• Ensures the consistent application of laws relating to consumer transactions and
agreements.
• Promotes the rights and full participation of historically disadvantaged individuals as
consumers in the economy.

Impact of the CPA

 Protects businesses if they are regarded as consumers.

 Safeguards businesses from dishonest competitors.
 The implementation of the CPA is time-consuming, expensive, prescriptive and
administratively burdensome, especially the implementation processes and procedures
required by the CPA.
 Consumers can take advantage of businesses and return goods when it is not necessary to
do so.

Actions regarded as Non-compliance of the CPA

• Treating customers unfairly based on any form of discrimination such as race, gender, age,
religion, language, culture, disability, sexual orientation.
• Charging different and unfair prices to consumers for the same goods and services.
• Denying/refusing customers proper information about the goods and services.
• Varying/differentiating the quality of goods when selling in different areas – this is known as
place discrimination.

Penalties / Consequences of non-compliance of the CPA

• Businesses that do not comply may receive a compliance order that forces the business to
comply with the CPA.
• Businesses who neglect to comply with the CPA may receive large fines and may be given
a jail sentence/imprisonment, which will be dependent on the severity of the non-
compliance.
• Licences of businesses may be revoked for unfair consumer practices.
• Businesses may be compelled to pay interest or damages that are due to the consumer.

Page 17 of 18
Ways in which a business can comply with the CPA

• Display the name of the business all business documentation, for example,
letterheads/invoices/contracts.
• Allow consumers a five day cooling-off period in the sales agreement.
• Disclose the prices of all products that are on sale.
• Ensure that the quality of the goods and services is standardised and identical for all
consumers.

Rights of CONSUMERS

• Right to choose
• Right to fair and honest dealings
• Right to disclosure and information
• Right to fair marketing
• Right to accountability from suppliers
• Right to fair terms and conditions
• Right to equality in the consumer market place

Page 18 of 18