The Labour Relations Act

Question 1

What does the LRA cover?

Answer 1

-Rights of employees to form and join a union
-Rights of employers to form and join an employers’ organisation
-Rights of trade unions in the workplace
Collective bargaining
-Bargaining Councils and Statutory Councils
-The establishment of workplace forums that allow employees to participate in management decisions at work
-What are fair and unfair labour practices
-Procedures that must be followed for dismissals to be fair
-Dispute resolution structures and procedures, including the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA)
-Industrial action

Question 2

What is collective agreements?

Answer 2

This is a simple agreement between employers (e.g., Chamber of Mines) and a union or unions (e.g., the National Union of Mineworkers). The agreement only affects these two parties.

Both parties must agree to a collective agreement.

Question 3

What are bargaining councils?

Answer 3

Bargaining council agreements cover a wide range of issues (e.g., wages, benefits, and grievance procedures) and extend to all employers and employees within the council’s scope of representivity, as long as certain requirements are met.

To establish a bargaining council there must be enough representation in both the unions and the employers’ organisations. Representation must be acceptable to NEDLAC (the National Economic Development and Labour Council).

Bargaining council agents monitor and enforce any collective agreements and have the power to issue compliance orders, to publish the contents of collective agreements and to conduct investigations into complaints.

Question 4

What are statutory councils?

Answer 4

This is a weaker version of a bargaining council, as it cannot be extended to parties outside of the council without the Minister of Labour’s approval.

To establish a statutory council, there must be 30% representation on both sides. This means that at least 30% of the employers in the sector must employ at least 30% of the workers.

Unions that are members of a statutory council will enjoy organisational rights of access, meetings, ballots and stop-order facilities, even in a workplace that has no union members.

Question 5

What are the two types of disputes?

Answer 5

Disputes of right
-These are disputes to which a party is entitled by law, contract, agreement, custom and practice.
-They are resolved via judicial adjudication or arbitration.
-When a dispute is declared, strike action is impermissible (disputes about dismissals based on operational requirements are one exception).
-An appropriate authority, such as the CCMA, in the case of a dismissal dispute and adjudication by the Labour Court should handle the resolution.
-Disputes may follow different routes, and specific structures (bargaining councils, CCMA and Labour Court) have jurisdiction to resolve them.
-With a dispute about interpreting the right to freedom of association and general protection, any party may refer the dispute in writing to a bargaining council or the commission.
-The council/commission must try to resolve the dispute through conciliation.
-Any party to the dispute may refer it to the Labour Court for adjudication if unresolved.

Disputes of interest:
-Disputes to which a party is not yet legally entitled.
-Demands that the party has tabled and hopes to get through persuasion or power tactics (trade unions may employ strike weapons).
-This type of dispute usually stems from a need for more agreement during negotiations.
-Once an agreement has been signed, the interest sought becomes a right.