Skills Development Act

Purpose

 Develops the skills of people in South Africa in order to improve productivity

 Invests in education and training of workers

 Improves the chances of getting a job for previously disadvantaged people

 Encourages workers to participate in learning programmes

Positives

 Trains employees to improve productivity in the workplace

 Promotes self-employment and black entrepreneurship

 Increases the return on investment in education and training

 Workplace discrimination can be addressed through training

Negatives

 Increases cost as the process requires a large amount of paper work

 Implementation of the SDA can be difficult to monitor and control

 Skills programmes may not always address training needs of employees

 Skills Development Levy could be an extra burden to financially struggling businesses

Discriminatory Actions

 Furnishing false information in any prescribed document

 Preventing employees from signing for a learnership due to their age or position

 Unfair promotion of skills and development to certain employees

 Providing employment services for gain without being registered as an employer

Penalties

 Businesses that do not pay the SDL may not claim grants from the SDA

 A labour inspector could order the business to stop operating if found guilty of illegal
practices

How to comply

 Employers who collect PAYE should register with SETA

  One percent of an employer's payroll has to be paid over to the SETA

 Businesses should register with SARS in the area in which their business is classified

 Employers should submit a workplace skills plan and provide evidence that it was
implemented

Role of SETAs

 Report to the director general

 Promote and establish learnerships

 Collect levies and pays out grants as required

 Monitor the actual training by service providers

NSDS

 Increase access to programmes that train people

 Make better use of workplace based skills development

 Increase the skills of the public sector to improve service delivery

HRDS

 Improve the study skills

 Addresses skills shortage in SA workforce

 Aims at achieving faster economic growth

Labour Relations Act

Purpose

 Promotes collective bargaining at the workplace

 Establishes Labour Court and labour Appeal Courts

 Promotes fair labour practice between employee and employer

 Promotes workplace to accommodate employees in decision making

Positives

 Promotes a healthy relationship between employee and employer

 Protects the rights of business in labour related issues

 Labour disputes are settled quicker and less expensive

  Workplace forums can add value to businesses

Negatives

 Reduced global competitiveness due to lower productivities

 Costs of labour increase because of legal strikes

 Employers may not get a court interdict to stop a strike

 Many employees and employers do not understand the LRA

Discriminatory Actions

 Unfair dismissal of employees

 Preventing employees from joining trade unions

 Refusing the establishment of workplace forums

Penalties

 The employer may be forced to enter into a dispute resolution process

 Businesses will be fined

 Businesses that fail to comply may risk financial costs

How to comply

 Do not unfairly dismiss employees

 Support establishment of workplace forums

 Employers should not breach any collective agreement

 Businesses should allow employees to form trade unions

Rights of employers

 Right to lockout any employee involved in an illegal strike

 Dismiss employees involved in illegal strike

 Form employer organisations

Rights of employees

 Join a trade union of their choice

 Participate in legal strikes

 Refer unresolved disputes to the CCMA

  Refer unresolved CCMA disputes to the Labour Court on appeal

Employment equity Act

Purpose

 Employees who do the same work must be paid equally

 No discrimination on grounds of gender

 Promotes equal opportunity and fair treatment

 Provides for employees to refer unresolved disputes to the CCMA

Positives

 Encourages consultation between employee and employer

 Promotes equal opportunity and fair treatment in the workplace

 Appointment process is clearly defined

 Motivates employees because everyone has equal employment opportunities

Negatives

 Often positions go unfilled because there are no suitable EE candidates

 Expensive to employ someone who knows little about the Act

 Job hopping of skilled EE appointees may increase staff turnover

 Increased administration burden as businesses must submit EE reports every 2 years

Discriminatory Actions

 Not employing a young woman because she may want children in future

 Refusing to employ a person because they have strong religious beliefs

 Doing HIV testing unless justified by the Labour Court

Penalties

 Businesses may be taken to the Labour Court for persecution

 Fines may be imposed on businesses that fail to comply

How to comply

 Businesses must guard against discriminatory appointments

 Promote equal opportunity and fair treatment

  Implement an employment equity plan

 Implement affirmative action measures to redress disadvantages experienced by designated

groups

Basic Conditions of Employment Act

Purpose

 Provides clear terms and conditions of employment for employees and employers

 Set minimum requirements for the employment contract

 Regulates the variations for basic Conditions of Employment

 Adheres to the rules and regulations set out by the International Labour Organisation

Positives

 Creates a framework of acceptable employment practices

 Encourages consultation between employee and employer

 Outlines minimum requirements that form the basis of employment contracts

 Work hours are specified so that the employer cannot exploit employees

Negatives

 Drafting a legal employment contract may be costly

 No employer may force an employee to work more than 45 hours a week

 Hiring cheap labour is no longer possible

 BCEA forces businesses to comply with many legal requirements

Penalties

 Labour inspectors may investigate complaints and and remove records as evidence

 Businesses may be taken in to the Labour Court for a ruling

 Businesses that are found guilty of noncompliance may face heavy fines

 The Director General may cancel the compliance order

How to comply

 Workers should only work 9 hours in a 5 day work week

 Workers can take up to 6 weeks paid sick leave during a 36 month cycle
  Workers must receive double if they work during public holidays

 They must have a break of 60 minutes after 5 hours of work

Provisions

Hours of work

 Workers may not work more than 45 hours in any week

 Workers may work 9 hours a day if working 5 days or less in a week

 Night work performed after 18:00 and before 6:00 the next day by agreement must be
compensated

 Ordinary work hours may be reduced to a maximum of 40 hours a week

Overtime

 Workers must agree to work overtime

 Workers cannot work more than 3 hours overtime pay day

 Double the normal rate of pay for overtime worked on Sunday and public holidays

 Overtime must be paid at a specific rate

Leaves

Annual leave

 21 consecutive days annual leave per year

 An employer can only pay a worker in lieu of leave if that workers leaves the job

Sick leave

 Employees are entitled to 6 weeks paid sick leave in a 3 year cycle

 A medical certificate may be required before paying an employee who is absent frequently

Maternity leave

 A pregnant employee is entitled to four consecutive months leave

 A pregnant employee may not be allowed to perform work that is hazardous to her and her
unborn child

Family leave

 Three to five days paid leave per year

Termination of employment
  A contract of employment may be terminated following one week's notice, if the worker has
been employed for six months or less

 A minimum of four weeks notice must be given, if worker has been employed for a year or
more

 The employee must be given a written notice

 An employee who is retrenched is entitled to one week's severance pay for every year of
service

Child and forced labour

 It is illegal to employ a child younger than 15

 It is also illegal to force someone to work

 Businesses may employ children over the age of 16 if employment is not harmful

COIDA

Purpose

 Provides a comprehensive protection to employees who are injured in the course of

performing their duties

 Applies to all casual and full-time workers injured due to a workplace accident

 It excludes workers who are guilty of wilful misconduct

Positives

 Promotes safety in the workplace

 Employees do not contribute towards the fund

 Claiming process are relatively simple

 Eliminates time and costs spent on lengthy civil court proceedings

Negatives

 Claiming process can be time consuming

 Military workers are not covered

 Implementation process required by the ACT may be expensive

 Procedure required by this ACT may be costly as paper work places an extra administrative
burden

Discriminatory Actions
  Employers who bribe employees from reporting the accident

 Providing false information about previous serious injuries

 Employers who do not contribute to the compensation fund

 Employers that take too long to process claims

Penalties

 Businesses can be fined for refusing to logde the claim

 Businesses can be forced to make large payments

 They may be forced to pay any recovery cost required by the compensation fund

 Employees may take businesses to court for not registering them with the compensation
fund

How to comply

 Businesses should provide a safe working environment

 Ensure that the premises is in good working condition

 Report all incidents causing illness of employees

 Register with the Compensation Commissioner and provide the particulars of the business

BBBEE

Purpose

 Enable wealth to be spread more broadly across all population groups

 Outline areas that would give the government a platform for bringing equitable spread of
wealth

 It aims at targeting inequality in the South African economy

Pillars

Management Control

 Businesses must ensure that transformation is implemented at all levels

 Involve black people in the decision making process

 Appoint black people in senior executive positions

 Ensure that black females are represented in management

Skills Development
  Businesses must engage black employees in skills Development initiatives

 Provide learnerships and learning programmes to black employees

 Businesses must contribute 1% of their payroll to fund skills Development programmes

Ownership

 Businesses should include black people in shareholding

 Encourage small black investors to invest in big companies

 More opportunities are created for black people to become owners

ESD

 Businesses must create jobs as ESD promotes local manufacturing

 Identify black owned suppliers that are able to supply goods and services

 Outsource services to suppliers that are BBBEE compliant

Socioeconomic

 Businesses should focus on critical areas which can affect growth and development in the
country

 They should distribute scarce CSI resources to selected beneficiaries in the community

Positives

 Encourages businesses to address the demands for redress

 Provides a variety of business codes to improve employment equity

 Provides for human resources development through training and development

 A good BEE rating improves the image of the business

Negatives

 Businesses could experience large financial implications

 Process may lead to nepotism if not monitored correctly

 Businesses that want to do business with the government must have their BEE status
annually

 Procedures may be costly to the business

Discriminatory Actions

 Failing to implement affirmative action to meet BBBEE responsibilities

  Promoting unsuitable people into a management position at the expense of qualified PDPs

 Refusing to award tenders to black suppliers who are BEE compliant

Penalties

 Business owners may face imprisonment

 The penalty could be a fine of up to 10% of the company's annual turnover

 Government will cancel any contract awarded that was based on false information regarding
BBBEE status

 A business can be banned from participating in government contracts for a period of 10

years

How to comply

 Businesses must appoint black people in managerial positions

 Businesses must sell shares to black people

 Send black people for skill development training

 Outsource their services to BEE compliant suppliers

National Credit Act

Purpose

 Promote a fair but competitive credit market

 Ensure that consumers know what is included in their credit contracts

 Ensures registration of credit bureau and debt counseling services

 Prevent discrimination and ensure credit is available to all consumers

Positives

 Lower bad debts resulting in better cash flow

 Protects business against nonpaying consumers

 Authorised credit providers may attract more customers

Negatives

 Debt collection procedures are more complex and expensive

 Increases administration burden on credit providers

 Leads to loss of sale as many consumers may no longer qualify to buy on credit
Discriminatory Actions

 Refusing credit to customers based on gender/ race

 Charging different interest rates based on gender/ race

 Blacklisting customers without making effort to recover the debt

Penalties

 The business may not demand payment or sue customers

 The business may not charge any other charges

 The court may declare the granting of credit by the business reckless

How to comply

 Disclose all costs of loan

 Obtain records of clients before granting loans

 Businesses should be registered with the National Credit Regulator

Consumer Rights

 Apply for credit and to be free from discrimination

 Receive information in plain and understandable language

 Obtain reasons for credit being refused

Consumer Protection Act

Purpose

 Promotes responsible consumer behaviour

 Establishes national standards to protect consumers

 Ensures that consumers are not misled by suppliers

 Promotes consumer safety by protecting them from hazardous products

Positives

 Businesses may be safeguarded from dishonest competitors

 Businesses may be protected if they are regarded as consumers

 Prevents larger business from undermining smaller ones

 May gain consumer loyalty

Negatives

 Penalties for noncompliance may be very high

 Confidential business information may become available to competitors

 Businesses may feel unnecessarily burdened by legal processs

 They have to disclose more info about their products

Discriminatory Actions

 Denying customers proper info about the product

 Treating customers differently based on gender/ race

 Charging unfair prices for the same goods and services

 Varying the quality of goods when selling in different areas

Penalties

 Direct imprisonment may be imposed

 Businesses may face fines

 Government agencies may disolve your business entirely

 Businesses will be forced to which their rights have been violated

How to comply

 Disclose prices of all products on sale

 Provide adequate training to staff on the CPA

 All agreement must provide for a five day cooling off period

 Ensure that goods and services offered are standardised

Consumer Rights

Right to choose

 Choose suppliers and goods

 Shop around for best prices

 Return goods that are unsafe for a full refund

Right to privacy

 Restrict unwanted direct marketing

  Object to unwanted promotional emails

 Right to stop the sharing of their personal details

Right to fair and honest dealings

 Supplier may not harass customers

 Suppliers may not give misleading information

 Businesses may not promote pyramid schemes

Human Resources

Recruitment

 The process used by business to identify vacancies in the business and attract suitable
candidates

 Aims at finding candidates who have the necessary qualifications to fill the vacancy

Recruitment Procedure

 Vacancies can be internally advertised

 If internal recruitment fails, external recruitment should be considered

 If the external recruitment is done, the relevent recruitment source should be selected

Job Description

 Describes duties of a specific job

 Written description of the job and it's requirements

 Describes key performance areas

Job Specification

 Specifies the minimum acceptable personal qualities

 Written description of specific qualifications

 Describes key requirements of the person filling the position

Internal recruitment: use of internal sources to advertise vacancies

Sources
  Word of mouth

 Internal bulletins

 Internal emails

 Notice boards

Positives

 Quicker to fill the post

 Provides opportunities for career paths within the business

 Reduce the chances of losing employees

Negatives

 May close the door for new ideas

 Employees who are not promoted may feel demotivated

 The number of applicants is limited

External recruitment: use of external resources to advertise vacancies

Sources

 Billboards

 Recruitment Agencies

 Networking

 Social media

Positives

 New candidates bring new ideas

 There is a larger pool of candidates to choose from

 It may help the business to meet affirmative action

Negatives

 Information on CV may be false

 Many unsuitable applications may slow down the selection process

 External sources can be expensive

Selection procedure
  Receive documentation

 Evaluate CV and create shortlist

 Asses candidates that applied

 Conduct interviews

Screening

 Check application documents against the requirements

 Candidates who meet the minimum requirements are separated

 Do background checks of suitable candidates

 Prepare a shortlist of suitable candidates after screening

Purpose of Interview

 To determine a candidates suitability for the job

 Obtains info about each candidate

 Evaluate the skills and personal characteristics of the applicant

 Helps the employer in choosing the most suitable candidate

Role of Interviewer before interview

 Book and prepare the venue for the interview

 Inform all shortlisted candidates of date and place

 Notify all panel members conducting the interview about the date and place

Role of Interviewer during

 Allocate the same amount of time to each candidate

 Introduce members of the interviewing panel to each candidate

 Make the interviewee feel at ease

Role of Interviewee

 Greet interviewer by name with a solid handshake

 Listen carefully to questions before responding

 Show confidence

 Asking clarity seeking questions

Employment contract: agreement between the employer and employee and is legally binding

Aspects

 Hours of work

 Remuneration

 Leave

 Period of contract

Legal requirements

 Employers and employees must both sign

 Employer and employee must agree to any changes

 No party may unilaterally change aspects of the contract

Termination of Contract

 Resign

 Dismissed

 Retired

 Retrenched

Induction

 New employees are familiarised with their new physical work environment

 New employees are informed about the processes

Purpose

 Introduction to key people and immediate colleagues

 Safety regulations and rules

 Overview of the business

 Your of the premises

Benefits

 Increase quality performance

 Allows employees to settle in quickly

 Ensures that new employees understands rules and regulations

Placement

 Selected candidates are placed where they will function optimally

 A specific job is assigned to the selected candidate

Placement Procedure

 The employer should determine the relationship between the expectations of the position
and the competencies of the employee

Importance of training

 Employee who receives the necessary training is more able to perform in their job

 The investment in training that a company makes shows employees that they are valued

Piece- meal

 Paid according to the number of units produced

 Workers are not remunerated for the hours worked

 Used in textile factories

Time-related

 Paid for amount of time spent on a task

 Used by private businesses

Link between Salary Determination and BCEA

 BCEA outlines legalities,such as employment contract

 BCEA sets conditions that ensure fair labour

Fringe Benefits

 Medical Aid Fund

 Pension Fund

 Car, housing allowance

 Staff discount

UIF

 Employees and employers each contribute 1%

 Employers must pay unemployment insurance contributions of 2% of the value of each

workers salary per month
Positives of Fringe Benefits

 Improves productivity

 Increases employee satisfaction

 Benefits are tax deductible

 Used as leverage for salary negotiations

Negatives

 Businesses who cannot offer fringe Benefits fail to attract skilled workers

 It can create conflict

 Are additional costst that may result in cash flow problems

Implications of LRA

 Promotes resolution of labour disputes

 Advances economic development

 Protects the rights of employers and employees

Implications of EEA

 Equal pay for work of equal value

 Ensure that affirmative action promotes diversity

 Retrain designated groups through skills Development programmes

Implications of SDA

 Contribute 1% of their salary bill to the SDL

 Ensure training in the workplace is familiarised

 Appoint a full-time consultant as a skills Development Facilitator

Implications of BCEA

 Workers must receive double if they work during public holidays

 They must have a 60 minutes break after five hours of work

 Businesses should not employ children under the age of 16