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Labour Court of South Africa, Johannesburg

The Labour Court has the same status as a high court. The Labour Court adjudicates matters relating to labour disputes. Appeals are made to the Labour Appeal Court.

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86 Juta Street, Arbour Square Building, 6th and 7th Floors, Corner Juta and Melle Streets, Braamfontein 2001
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https://www.justice.gov.za/labourcourt
8 judgments
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8 judgments
Citation
Judgment date
August 2019
OSHO Steel (Pty) Ltd v Ngobeni N.O. and Others (JR 2768/2017) [2019] ZALCJHB 133 (27 August 2019)
Reported
Review dismissed: Applicant failed to comply with Rule 7A record rules and s145(8) security requirements.
Labour Court procedure – Rule 7A compliance – official record via Registrar required; Private transcripts not acceptable without CCMA reconstruction; LRA s145(7)–(8) – security mandatory for employer review applicants unless Court directs otherwise; failure to comply renders review defective; costs for non-compliance.
 27 August 2019
NUMSA obo Mathonsi v Scaw Metals (Pty) Ltd N.O. and Others (JR 2803/2016) [2019] ZALCJHB 134 (20 August 2019)
Reported
Arbitrator’s credibility and reasonableness findings upheld; dismissal found procedurally and substantively fair.
Labour law – review of arbitration award – reasonableness/Sidumo standard – credibility findings – evidentiary burden shifts after employer’s prima facie proof of misconduct – procedural and substantive fairness of dismissal upheld.
 20 August 2019
Msi and Others v National Union of Mineworkers (J 1714/2019) [2019] ZALCJHB 136 (16 August 2019)
Precautionary suspensions validly delegated under a union constitution do not justify interim reinstatement.
Labour law – trade union constitutions – precautionary suspension powers; delegation of authority to deputy general secretary; validity of suspension letters. Interim relief – requirements (prima facie right, irreparable harm, balance of convenience) – failure to establish prima facie right. Internal remedies – no appeal against precautionary suspension where constitution limits appeals to disciplinary findings. Section 158(1)(e) LRA – disputes about non-compliance with union constitution may be adjudicated, but interim relief demands are strict.
 16 August 2019
South African Broadcasting Corporation (Soc) Ltd and Others v Mkhize and Another (J 1726/2019) [2019] ZALCJHB 135 (16 August 2019)
Reported
Labour Court lacks general supervisory jurisdiction to set aside CCMA subpoenas; review under s158(1)(g) is the appropriate remedy.
Labour Court jurisdiction – CCMA subpoenas under s142 LRA – absence of general supervisory power – appropriate remedy: review under s158(1)(g) – arbitrator’s powers to manage subpoenas and curb abuse of arbitration process.
 16 August 2019
Johannesburg Roads Agency (Soc) Ltd v South African Municipal Workers Union and Others (J 1000/2019) [2019] ZALCJHB 137 (15 August 2019)
Reported
A concerted, destructive work stoppage lacking procedural compliance was an unprotected strike; rule nisi confirmed, union pays costs.
Labour law – Strike (s 213 LRA) – Concerted refusal to work – Protected versus unprotected industrial action – Procedural compliance – Violent and destructive conduct – Urgent interdictory relief – Citing members en masse – Union accountability and costs.
 15 August 2019
Department of Home Affairs v General Public Services Sectoral Bargaining Council N.O. and Others (JR 281/2017) [2019] ZALCJHB 386 (14 August 2019)
Reported
Condonation granted; arbitrator reasonably weighed hearsay transcripts and reinstatement award withstands review.
Labour law — review of arbitration award — condonation for late referral; Procedure — failure to file complete record (Rule 7A) and late heads; Evidence — admissibility and weight of hearsay/transcripts where complainant unavailable (deportation); Standard of review — Sidumo reasonableness test; Costs — no punitive costs despite procedural non‑compliance.
 14 August 2019
Kitimi v Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration and Another (J 1695/2019) [2019] ZALCJHB 387 (13 August 2019)
Contempt application against CCMA for postponing a remitted arbitration was struck from the roll for lack of urgency and procedural defects.
Contempt of court – CCMA – Alleged failure to implement remittal order – Requirement of wilful and mala fide non-compliance and joinder of responsible persons. Urgency – Distinct requirements for urgent relief; interdict tests inappropriate for urgency. Labour Law – Review of commissioner’s rulings – s 158(1)(g) LRA as alternative remedy. Practice and procedure – Compliance with practice manual for contempt applications. Costs – Frivolous/vexatious litigation warranting punitive attorney-and-client costs.
 13 August 2019
Bidair Services (Pty) Ltd v Commissioner Makgoba N.O. and Others (JR 2413/2016) [2019] ZALCJHB 138 (1 August 2019)
Reported
CCMA lacked jurisdiction because the dispute was a refusal-to-bargain/bargaining-unit issue, not a pure organisational-rights dispute.
Labour law — Organisational rights (ss 12–16) v collective bargaining — Distinction between workplace and bargaining unit — s 64(2) refusal to bargain jurisdictional limits — s 21 procedural requirements for organisational rights enforcement.
 1 August 2019