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Citation
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Judgment date
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| November 2025 |
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Whether a section 189A(13) reinstatement/status‑quo order is interlocutory and enforceable pending appeal under section 18.
Superior Courts Act s18 — suspension pending appeal; interlocutory v final effect of interim orders; Labour Relations Act s189A(13) remedies (status‑quo/reinstatement v compensation); section 18(3) exceptional circumstances and irreparable harm; relevance of prospects of success on appeal.
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12 November 2025 |
| October 2025 |
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Whether provident‑fund contributions are calculated on a deemed 45‑hour week or actual hours worked.
Collective agreements – interpretation – 'pensionable remuneration' construed in context with Main Collective Agreement – deeming provision treating certain weeks as 45 hours – contributions calculated on a 45‑hour basis; Endumeni principles and objects of the LRA applied.
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2 October 2025 |
| September 2025 |
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A binding arbitration sanction for password‑related misconduct precludes subsequent dismissal for the same misconduct; later award set aside.
Labour law – double jeopardy and fairness – effect of a prior binding arbitration award (s 143(1) LRA) – employer precluded from re‑punishing same misconduct – review where arbitrator ignores binding award.
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30 September 2025 |
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Board policy resolution did not itself convert fixed‑term contracts or change retirement age; expiry by effluxion of time precluded dismissal claims.
Employment law — fixed‑term contracts — board policy resolution does not automatically convert individual fixed‑term contracts to permanent status without mutual agreement; retirement age governed by pension fund rules and contract terms. Labour law — effluxion of time — expiration of fixed‑term contract is not a dismissal under s186(1) LRA absent variation. Discrimination law — differential retirement arrangements tied to occupational category/pension rules do not necessarily amount to prohibited age discrimination under EEA. Prescription — claimant filed within three years of knowledge of resolution. Costs — in concurrent jurisdiction under BCEA, costs determined by law and fairness; no costs order in this Court.
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22 September 2025 |
| June 2025 |
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Commissioner's discretion to deny reinstatement upheld due to intolerability in employment relationship from respondent's conduct.
Labour Law – unfair dismissal – determination of remedy under section 193 of the Labour Relations Act – reinstatement versus compensation – intolerable employment relationship due to the respondent's conduct.
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19 June 2025 |
| May 2025 |
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Reported
Court affirms dismissal for serious misconduct during strike, contrasts outcomes based on employee identification and rule breach.
Labour law – Strike action – Dismissal for breach of picketing rules – Fairness of dismissal – Interpretation of court orders.
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28 May 2025 |
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Reported
SWF's trade union registration fails for non-compliance with statutory requirements for office-bearers' establishment and procedures.
Labour Law – Trade union registration – Compliance with statutory requirements – Organizational structure and independence.
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26 May 2025 |
| September 2021 |
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Reported
Underground, pre‑planned unprotected sit‑in constituted a strike; dismissal for dangerous, obstructive conduct was procedurally and substantively fair.
Labour law – Industrial action – Definition of strike (s 213 LRA) – Unprotected underground sit‑in; Schedule 8 item 6 – duty to contact union and issue ultimatum – when steps can be dispensed with; Substantive fairness – appropriate sanction for dangerous, pre‑planned illegal strike; Historical inconsistency – requires evidential basis.
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9 September 2021 |
| July 2021 |
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Reported
An employer may only overturn a disciplinary chairperson’s sanction if fairness, supported by evidence of exceptional circumstances, justifies intervention.
Labour law – Disciplinary procedure – Employer intervention to alter chairperson’s sanction – Test is fairness informed by exceptional circumstances – Employer’s evidentiary burden to prove inconsistency or other exceptional justification – Doctrine of election considered in context of fairness.
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2 July 2021 |
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Reported
Court limited interference with arbitrator's compensation and held project manager was not a TES, so deeming provisions did not apply.
Labour Law – Compensation for unfair dismissal – judicial interference with arbitrator's discretion – narrow review grounds (capriciousness, wrong principle, bias, no reason). Labour Law – Fixed-term contracts – s198B deeming of indefinite duration where work not of limited duration. Labour Law – Temporary Employment Service (TES) and s198A(3)(b) – requirement of a tripartite relationship to trigger deeming clause. Administrative/Review – scope of Labour Court review of arbitration awards on quantum.
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2 July 2021 |
| June 2021 |
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Reported
An agency shop clause protecting only non-union members fails mandatory section 25(3) requirements and is therefore invalid.
Labour law – Agency shop agreements – Section 25(3) LRA mandatory requirement that employees who are not members of the representative union not be compelled to join – Clause protecting only employees who are not members of any union fails to comply – Validity versus interpretation/application of collective agreements – Section 24(2) jurisdiction.
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29 June 2021 |
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Reported
Dismissals upheld: common purpose in violent unprotected strike established by inferential reasoning and failure to disassociate.
Labour law – Collective misconduct – Unprotected strike – Common purpose doctrine in workplace context; presence not essential if prior/subsequent knowledge and intention to associate proved (Dunlop); use of circumstantial evidence (video, photographs, clock records) and failure to disassociate as basis for inferring complicity; summary dismissal for serious violent misconduct.
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23 June 2021 |
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Reported
Court reduced solatium and held employer’s refusal of post‑retirement medical benefit an unfair labour practice against the applicant.
Labour law – unfair dismissal – remedy under ss 193–194 LRA – discretion to award solatium and factors relevant to quantum (severance, post‑dismissal employment); Labour law – unfair labour practice – provision of benefits (PRMB) – differential treatment requires objective, rational, fair justification; review of arbitration award for failure to entertain key factual and legal issues.
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2 June 2021 |
| May 2021 |
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Reported
Arbitrator reasonably found procurement approvals unlawful under PFMA/SITA, dismissal unfair due to inconsistent discipline and procedural defects.
Labour law – arbitration award review – reasonableness standard under Sidumo – whether an arbitrator’s findings on irregular expenditure and fairness of dismissal are one a reasonable arbitrator could reach. Public finance – PFMA and Treasury Regulations – irregular expenditure arising from non‑compliant procurement and use of another organ of state’s contract. SITA Act s 7(3) – procurement of IT goods/services through SITA and prohibition on unauthorised assignment. Procedural fairness – waiver of right to be heard where hearing officials were initially in default. Parity principle – inconsistent disciplinary treatment and its effect on fairness of sanction.
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26 May 2021 |
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Reported
Section 36(2)’s 30‑day limit is directory; substantial compliance allowed and late applicant retrospectively reinstated.
SAPS Act s36(2) – Interpretation of 30‑day time limit; directory vs peremptory time‑bar; substantial compliance doctrine; reinstatement after conviction set aside; procedural fairness and rationality of administrative decision.
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25 May 2021 |
| January 2021 |
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Reported
An arbitration award will only be set aside on review if its outcome is one no reasonable decision-maker could have reached.
Labour law – Review of CCMA awards – Sidumo test – Decision reviewable only if no reasonable decision-maker could have reached it; Review distinct from appeal; Procedural misdirection immaterial where outcome remains reasonable; Bias and minor recording errors must be shown to be material; Employer must prove serious misconduct (firearm threat) with adequate investigation; Sanction must align with progressive discipline.
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22 January 2021 |
| December 2020 |
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Delay in prosecuting a review must be measured against IMATU; an erroneous prescription ruling by an arbitrator was set aside and remit ordered.
Labour law – review of CCMA jurisdictional ruling – prescription – Rule 7A(8)(b) condonation – delay in prosecution of review – application of IMATU – remit to CCMA for new arbitrator.
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7 December 2020 |
| November 2020 |
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Reported
Labour Court cannot adjudicate picketing‑rule breaches without CCMA conciliation; interdicts must not evict employees or be overly broad.
Labour law – Picketing disputes – s 69 LRA – mandatory CCMA conciliation before court may order compliance with picketing rules; Interdict – scope and limits – interdict amounting to eviction by implication invalid; Protected strike – employer entitled to limited relief against unlawful/criminal conduct by named employees; Urgency does not override s 69 conciliation requirement.
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17 November 2020 |
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Reported
An arbitration award for reinstatement/back-pay is a "debt" and review proceedings interrupt prescription until finalisation.
Labour law; prescription of arbitration awards; Prescription Act applicable to LRA claims; arbitration award for reinstatement/back-pay is a "debt"; referral to CCMA and review proceedings interrupt prescription until finalisation (Pieman’s applied).
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17 November 2020 |
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Reported
Organizational rights cannot be based on outdated membership data; current representativeness is essential.
Labour Law – Organisational Rights – Entitlement based on representativity – Requirement for current membership assessment for organizational rights.
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13 November 2020 |
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Reported
Employee bore evidentiary burden to prove justification; hearsay did not establish private defence, dismissal was fair.
Labour law – dismissal for misconduct – SAPS Disciplinary Regulations Reg 20(z) – commission of common‑law offence as misconduct; Onus and evidentiary burden – employee must prove justification/private defence on balance of probabilities; Section 192(2) LRA does not shift burden to employer to disprove defences; Hearsay – investigatory witnesses’ recounting of employee’s out‑of‑court version inadmissible as proof of justification; Criminal acquittal irrelevant to disciplinary misconduct finding.
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13 November 2020 |
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Reported
Inconsistent evidence and lack of notice precluded contempt finding, but the arbitration reinstatement order remains enforceable.
Labour law — contempt of court — requirement of proof beyond reasonable doubt for wilful non‑compliance with certified arbitration award; credibility and inconsistencies in evidence critical to contempt findings; fines for contempt are punitive and payable to the State; arbitration awards remain enforceable despite dismissal of contempt application.
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13 November 2020 |
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Reported
Adverse costs order without reasons in a labour matter justified appellate interference despite mootness.
Practice and procedure — Mootness — Whether exceptional circumstances justify hearing costs only; Labour law — Costs in labour matters — costs do not ordinarily follow the result; Requirement that presiding officers give reasons and judicially exercise discretion when awarding costs; Enforcement of certified arbitration awards — interplay with section 143(4) of the LRA; Appellate interference where lower court misdirects on costs.
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13 November 2020 |
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Reported
A newcomer’s pay‑progression complaint failed: "any other arbitrary ground" is narrow and collective bargaining terms are not PAJA administrative action.
* Employment equity – scope of "any other arbitrary ground" – narrow, analogous‑grounds approach; "newness" not analogous. Labour law/collective agreements – PSCBC Resolution altering pay‑progression qualifying period; contractual product of collective bargaining. Administrative law – PAJA applicability – collective agreements and related ministerial/departmental policies regulating conditions of service do not, by virtue of s 5(6) deeming, necessarily constitute administrative action reviewable under PAJA. |
9 November 2020 |
| October 2020 |
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Reported
The applicant’s pattern of unwelcome sexual conduct warranted dismissal; appeal dismissed with costs.
Labour law; sexual harassment — unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature; single incidents and cumulative conduct can constitute harassment; power imbalance and supervisory position relevant to substantive fairness and sanction; inconsistency defence not sustainable where comparator was acquitted for evidential reasons.
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13 October 2020 |
| August 2020 |
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Deeming provision s359(2) is a rebuttable presumption; Labour Court may decide ancillary section 359(2)(b) relief; Rule 11 dismissed.
Companies Act s359(2) – deeming provision and rebuttable presumption; Liquidation – notice to liquidator, waiver and approbate-and-reprobate; Labour Court incidental jurisdiction to determine ancillary section 359(2)(b) relief; Evidentiary sufficiency for establishing winding-up and liquidator appointment dates; Rule 11 applications in Labour Court.
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4 August 2020 |
| May 2020 |
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Reported
Employer’s dismissals for intimidatory shutdown of site were substantively fair; dismissal was appropriate sanction.
Labour law – unfair dismissal – intimidation of subcontractors and management; deliberate site shutdown – review of CCMA award for unreasonableness – evaluation of evidence and balancing of mitigation and employer’s interests – sanction: dismissal appropriate.
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29 May 2020 |
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Reported
Continued work after fixed-term expiry tacitly creates an indefinite contract; reinstatement is the primary remedy absent exceptional circumstances.
Labour law – fixed-term contracts – continuation of services after expiry – tacit novation to contracts of indefinite duration; employer control and payment arrangements through implementing agents do not negate employment relationship; unfair dismissal – jurisdiction to determine dismissal where employment continued; remedies – s193(2) LRA mandates reinstatement absent exceptional circumstances.
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28 May 2020 |
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Reported
An applicant may not pursue separate CCMA proceedings on the same dismissal once a non-resolution certificate has been issued.
Labour law – CCMA jurisdiction – multiple referrals arising from a single dismissal – res judicata not applicable to certificate of non-resolution; lis pendens bars duplicate proceedings; s158(2) LRA allows amplification or referral by Labour Court.
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28 May 2020 |
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Reported
A CCMA grant of stop-order rights under s21(8C) does not exempt minority-union members from agency shop fees.
Labour law – agency shop agreements – section 25 LRA – employer obligation to deduct agency fees from employees identified in collective agreement, including minority-union members; Organisational rights – section 21(8C) LRA – empowers CCMA commissioner to override section 18 thresholds but does not override agency shop agreements; Constitutional and international law – section 25 consistent with Constitution and ILO standards; Distinction between agency fees and union membership subscriptions.
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28 May 2020 |
| December 2019 |
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Reported
A tendered resignation does not limit compensation for an unfair dismissal once termination is by dismissal; arbitrator’s s194 award restored.
Labour law – Unfair dismissal – Compensation under s 194(1) – Arbitrator's discretion – review only if capricious, wrong principle, bias or absence of substantial reasons (Kemp test). Resignation – relevance of a tendered resignation to quantum where dismissal is found – resignation induced or not freely made is irrelevant once dismissal occurs. Costs – individual litigant unassisted by a union may recover taxable costs, including disbursements and, in principle, the reasonable value of her own legal expertise.
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11 December 2019 |
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Reported
Employee failed to disclose a conflict of interest but dismissal was disproportionate; reinstatement ordered from 1 July 2019.
Labour law – misconduct – conflict of interest – duty to disclose involvement with service providers; credibility and holistic assessment of evidence; sanction appropriateness – dismissal disproportionate; reinstatement ordered from specified date.
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11 December 2019 |
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Reported
Employer need not prove employee’s guilt to justify precautionary suspension; compensation reduced as excessive.
Labour law – precautionary suspension – employer need not prove employee’s guilt at arbitration; relevance limited to allegations existing at suspension date; procedural fairness; review of arbitrator’s compensation award – standard is whether discretion was exercised capriciously, upon wrong principle, with bias, without reason, or no reasonable decision-maker could reach the result; quantum reduced for contributory employee conduct and other relevant factors.
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11 December 2019 |
| November 2019 |
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Reported
Arbitrator’s dismissal of a senior employee for coordinating fraud was reasonable under Sidumo; Labour Court erred and costs order reversed.
Review of arbitration award — Sidumo reasonableness standard; interference only if no reasonable arbitrator could reach decision. Consistency of discipline — proper to distinguish sanctions where senior employee coordinated misconduct. Managerial seniority, instruction of subordinates, access and lack of remorse as aggravating factors justifying dismissal. Labour Court costs — Zungu approach: costs in Labour Court are exceptional and must be fair and justified.
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26 November 2019 |
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Reported
An employee may pursue an independent contractual claim in the Labour Court despite an unsuccessful CCMA unfair dismissal claim.
Labour law – jurisdiction – concurrent jurisdiction of Labour Court and civil courts to hear contract of employment claims (BCEA s 77). Distinction between unfair dismissal claims under the LRA and independent contractual claims arising from termination. Res judicata and forum shopping – unsuccessful CCMA arbitration does not bar separate contractual claims. LRA s 195 – compensation under LRA is additional to contractual remedies. Relevant authorities: Makhanya (SCA); Gcaba (Constitutional Court); James distinguished.
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25 November 2019 |
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Reported
Whether an employee’s retirement age is 65 or 60 under amended terms and whether termination at 60 was lawful.
Employment law – retirement age – interpretation of revised terms and conditions and savings clause – whether general 2007 retirement age incorporated into individual contracts. Contract interpretation – Endumeni purposive/contextual approach; avoidance of rendering words superfluous. Variation of terms – lawful consultative amendment, acquiescence and employer’s contractual right to terminate on notice. Remedy – specific performance/reinstatement not readily granted in employment contract disputes.
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25 November 2019 |
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Reported
An arbitrator’s criminal-law focus produced an unreasonable reinstatement; dismissal of the employee was substantively fair.
Labour law – review of arbitration award – arbitrator’s unduly formalistic focus on proving criminal murder rather than assessing fairness of dismissal – gross irregularity warranting review. Disciplinary procedure – competent verdicts – wrongful characterisation of offence in charge sheet does not preclude conviction on competent verdict absent prejudice. Sanction – reinstatement inappropriate where police member’s reckless lethal use of service firearm at close range undermines trust; dismissal substantively fair. Civil procedure – condonation – late filing of appeal record and bench notes condoned in interests of justice where prospects of success strong.
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5 November 2019 |
| October 2019 |
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Reported
Whether internal appeal rights or unlawful delegation voided a relocation — court held neither applied and the relocation stood.
Labour law; relocation/redeployment — policy vs substantive rights; internal appeal rights under employer policy; delegation of authority by accounting authority under statutory power (section 2D); limits (or absence thereof) imposed by policy clause; collective agreement reached via consultation forum — binding effect and non-reviewability as unilateral administrative action.
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16 October 2019 |
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Reported
Retrospective substitution of an unenforceable agency-shop clause can validate prior bargaining-fee deductions if parties lawfully amend the collective agreement.
Labour law – agency shop agreements – compliance with s25(3) LRA; collective agreements – retrospective amendment and enforceability; distinction between rectification and substitution of collective agreement; bargaining-fee deductions validated by retrospective, compliant collective agreement.
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16 October 2019 |
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Reported
Employer’s refusal to implement graded upgrades constituted an unfair labour practice; arbitration award reinstated.
Labour law – Unfair labour practice (s 186(2)(a)) – Re-grading/upgrading of posts – CCMA jurisdiction – Employer’s failure to implement ECG recommendations – Evidence of employees performing higher-grade duties – Unequal treatment of similarly situated employees.
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4 October 2019 |
| September 2019 |
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Reported
Commissioner’s post‑hearing invocation of s200B without notice is unfair; s200B is not a general employer‑identity test.
Labour law – CCMA arbitration – identification of true nature of dispute – commissioner may not decide issues or invoke legal provisions (s200B) first in award without notice; s200B LRA – deeming provision to impose joint and several liability where simulated arrangements defeat the LRA, not a general test of employer identity; s198B LRA – fixed‑term contracts and deeming to indefinite employment.
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12 September 2019 |
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Reported
Allegations lacked reasonable basis as protected disclosures; dismissal for poor performance and trust breakdown was justified.
Protected Disclosures Act – definition of disclosure – requirement that employee have "reason to believe" information shows or tends to show criminality, failure to comply with legal obligations, or miscarriage of justice. PFMA – applicability limited to entities listed in Schedules 2 or 3; inapplicability precludes reliance on PFMA breaches. Occupational detriment/automatic unfair dismissal – must be causally linked to a protected disclosure. Abuse of PDA – PDA not a shield for employees whose misconduct or poor performance caused dismissal. Fairness of investigative process and termination of probation.
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12 September 2019 |
| August 2019 |
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Reported
Whether termination for community-related operational reasons breached contract and whether the employee proved breach and damages.
Employment law – Contractual termination – Whether employer’s termination for community-related operational and safety reasons breached contractual termination procedures (clause 6.1) – Plascon-Evans test – Onus on employee to prove breach and quantum of damages – Appropriate forum (BCEA v LRA) – Condonation and reinstatement of appeal.
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28 August 2019 |
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Reported
Dismissal for negligently distributing client intellectual property was fair despite charges alleging dishonesty.
Labour law – unfair dismissal – disciplinary charges – competent verdicts need not be specified in charge sheet if employee had adequate notice and was not prejudiced; negligence/gross negligence as basis for dismissal where custodian of employer/client intellectual property fails to exercise requisite standard of care; sanction proportionality.
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15 August 2019 |
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Reported
Continuation in post after probation does not automatically confirm permanency; implied extension and reasonable dismissal for poor performance upheld.
Labour law – probationary employment – whether continued employment after probation equals confirmation; extension of probation by implication to complete performance appraisal; dismissal for poor work performance – lower standard of substantive fairness for probationary employees (Item 8(1)(j)); deference to employer’s assessment and unreasonableness of arbitrator’s substitution of employer’s criteria.
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15 August 2019 |
| July 2019 |
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Reported
Employer need not always prove trust breakdown; CCMA’s reinstatement with limited back-pay was reasonable.
Labour law – review of CCMA arbitration award – standard of review: whether award is one a reasonable commissioner could make; breakdown of trust – employer not invariably required to lead evidence unless dismissal premised on breakdown; proportionality of dismissal for misconduct involving high-value metals; relevance of employee-supervisor proximity and role to sanction severity.
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24 July 2019 |
| June 2019 |
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Reported
A commissioner must apply section 3 LEAA timely; a late ruling on hearsay admissibility renders arbitration unfair.
Labour law — arbitration procedure — hearsay evidence — application of section 3 Law of Evidence Amendment Act — timing of admissibility rulings — duties of commissioner under section 138 LRA — late ruling causing unfairness — award set aside and matter remitted for de novo hearing.
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27 June 2019 |
| May 2019 |
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Public-sector employers are not automatically exempt from s145(8) security; Labour Court must exercise and explain its discretion.
Labour law – s145(7)–(8) LRA – security for stay of arbitration award pending review; Public-sector bodies – MFMA/PFMA do not automatically exempt municipalities from s145(8); Labour Court discretion – must be exercised on facts, considering material prejudice and employer’s ability to satisfy award; requirement to give reasons; LRA (s210) prevails on conflicts with other laws in employment matters.
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20 May 2019 |
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Settlement vitiated by material common mistake on legal position; threshold agreements do not bar minority unions from organisational rights.
Labour law – organisational rights – effect of private ‘threshold’ collective agreements – minority unions may seek organisational rights notwithstanding threshold agreements; CCMA settlement – vitiation for common mistake or induced misrepresentation – review of conciliation and jurisdictional rulings; joinder – necessity requires direct and substantial legal interest.
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4 May 2019 |
| March 2019 |
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Reported
A declaratory order subject to appeal cannot be executed for consequential relief absent exceptional proof and ascertainable liabilities.
Superior Courts Act s18(1)-(4) – suspension of operation/execution of judgments pending leave to appeal – exceptional circumstances and irreparable harm required to displace suspension. Declaratory relief vs consequential relief – courts should not infer or order specific performance or payment under s18(3) where only a declaratory order is extant and the lis is unresolved. Labour law – s197 LRA transfers – transfer declarations may require further proofs (identity of employees, effective dates) before execution or payment can be ordered. Execution principles – execution only appropriate where judgment is determinate and obligations/amounts are ascertainable.
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15 March 2019 |
