LABOUR RELATIONS ACT - CHAPTER 1
LABOUR RELATIONS ACT - CHAPTER 3
LABOUR RELATIONS ACT - CHAPTER 4
LABOUR RELATIONS ACT - CHAPTER 5
Labour Relations Act
CHAPTER II
Freedom Of Association And General Protections
1.
Employees' right to freedom of association
(1)
Every employee has the right-
(a)
to participate in forming a
trade union or federation of trade unions; and
(b)
to join a trade union, subject
to its constitution.
(2)
Every member of a trade union
has the right, subject to the constitution of that trade union-
(a)
to participate in its lawful
activities;
(b)
to participate in the election
of any of its office-bearers, officials or trade union representatives;
(c)
to stand for election and be
eligible for appointment as an office bearer or official and, if elected or
appointed, to hold office; and
(d)
to stand for election and be
eligible for appointment as a trade union representative and, if elected or
appointed, to carry out the functions of a trade union representative in terms
of this Act or any collective agreement.
(3)
Every member of a trade union
that is a member of a federation of trade unions has the right, subject to the
constitution of that federation-
(a)
to participate in its lawful
activities;
(b)
to participate in the election
of any of its office-bearers or officials; and
(c)
to stand for election and be
eligible for appointment as an office-bearer or official and, if elected or
appointed, to hold office.
2.
Protection of employees and persons seeking employment
(1)
No person may discriminate
against an employee for exercising any right conferred by this Act.
(2)
Without limiting the general
protection conferred by subsection (1), no person may do, or threaten to do,
any of the following-
(a)
require an employee or a person
seeking employment-
(i)
not to be a member of a trade
union or workplace forum;
(ii)
not to become a member of a
trade union or workplace, forum; or
(iii)
to give up membership of a
trade union or workplace forum;
(b)
prevent an employee or a person
seeking employment from exercising any right conferred by this Act or from
participating in any proceedings in terms of this Act; or
(c)
prejudice an employee or a
person seeking employment because of past, present or anticipated-
(i)
membership of a trade union or
workplace forum;
(ii)
participation in forming a
trade union or federation of trade unions or establishing a workplace forum;
(iii)
participation in the lawful
activities of a trade union, federation of trade unions or workplace forum;
(iv)
failure or refusal to do
something that an employer may not lawfully permit or require an employee to
do;
(v)
disclosure of information that
the employee is lawfully entitled or required to give to another person;
(vi)
exercise of any right conferred
by this Act; or
(vii)
participation in any
proceedings in terms of this Act.
(3)
No person may advantage, or
promise to advantage, an employee or a person seeking employment in exchange
for that person not exercising any right conferred by this Act or not
participating in any proceedings in terms of this Act. However, nothing in this section precludes
the parties to a dispute from concluding an agreement to settle that dispute.
(4)
A provision in any contract,
whether entered into before or after the commencement of this Act, that
directly or indirectly contradicts or limits any provision of section 4, or
this section, is invalid, unless the contractual provision is permitted by this
Act.
3.
Employers' right to freedom of association
(1)
Every employer has the right -
(a)
to participate in forming an
employers' organisation or a federation of employers' organisations; and
(b)
to an employers' organisation,
subject to its constitution.
(2)
Every member of an employers'
organisation has the right, subject to the constitution of that employers'
organisation-
(a)
to participate in its lawful
activities;
(b)
to participate in the election
of any of its office-bearers or officials; and
(c)
if-
(i)
a natural person, to stand for
election and be eligible for appointment as an office-bearer or official and,
if elected or appointed, to hold office;
(ii)
a juristic person, to have a
representative stand for election, and be eligible for appointment, as an
office-bearer or official and, if elected or appointed, to hold office.
(3)
Every member of an employers'
organisation that is a member of a federation of employers' organisations has
the right, subject to the constitution of that federation-
(a)
to participate in its lawful
activities;
(b)
to participate in the election
of any of its office-bearers or officials; and
(c)
if –
(i)
a natural person, to stand for
election and be eligible for appointment as an office-bearer or official and,
if elected or appointed, to hold office; or
(ii)
a juristic person, to have a
representative stand for election, and be eligible for appointment, as an
office-bearer or official and, if elected or appointed, to hold office.
4.
Protection of employers' rights
(1)
No person may discriminate
against an employer for exercising any right conferred by this Act.
(2)
Without limiting the general
protection conferred by subsection (1), no person may do, or threaten to do,
any of the following-
(a)
require an employer-
(i)
not to be a member of an
employers' organisation;
(ii)
not to become a member of an
employers' organisation; or
(iii)
to give up membership of an
employers' organisation;
(b)
prevent an employer from
exercising any right conferred by this Act or from participating in any
proceedings in terms of this Act; or
(c)
prejudice an employer because
of past, present or anticipated-
(i)
membership of an employers'
organisation;
(ii)
participation in forming an
employers' organisation or a federation of employers' organisations;
(iii)
participation in the lawful
activities of an employers' organisation or a federation of employers'
organisations;
(iv)
disclosure of information that
the employer is lawfully entitled or required to give to another person;
(v)
exercise of any right conferred
by this Act; or
(vi)
participation in any
proceedings in terms of this Act.
(3)
No person may advantage, or
promise to advantage, an employer in exchange for that employer not exercising
any right conferred by this Act or not participating in any proceedings in
terms of this Act. However, nothing in this section precludes the parties to a
dispute from concluding an agreement to settle that dispute.
(4)
A provision in any contract,
whether entered into before or after the commencement of this Act, that
directly or indirectly contradicts or limits any provision of section 6, or
this section, is invalid, unless the contractual provision is permitted by this
Act.
5.
Rights of trade unions and employers' organisations
Every trade union
and every employers' organisation has the right-
(a)
subject to the provisions of
Chapter VI –
(i)
to determine its own
constitution and rules; and
(ii)
to hold elections for its
office bearers, officials and representatives;
(b)
to plan and organise its
administration and lawful activities;
(c)
to participate in forming a
federation of trade unions or a federation of employers’ organisations;
(d)
to join a federation of trade
unions or a federation of employers’ organisations, subject to its
constitution, and to participate in its lawful activities; and
(e)
to affiliate with, and
participate in the affairs of, any international workers' organisation or
international employers' organisation or the International Labour Organisation,
and contribute to, or receive financial assistance from, those organisations.
6.
Procedure for disputes
(1)
If there is a dispute about the
interpretation or application of any provision of this Chapter, any party to
the dispute may refer the dispute in writing to-
(a)
a council, if the parties to
the dispute fall within the registered scope of that council; or
(b)
the Commission, if no council
has jurisdiction.
(2)
The party who refers the
dispute must satisfy the council or the Commission that a copy of the referral
has been served on all the other parties to the dispute.
(3)
The council or the Commission
must attempt to resolve the dispute through conciliation.
(4)
If the dispute remains
unresolved, any party to the dispute may refer it to the Labour Court for
adjudication.
7.
Burden of proof
In any
proceedings-
(a)
a party who alleges that a
right or protection conferred by this Chapter has been infringed must prove the
facts of the conduct; and
(b)
the party who engaged in that
conduct must then prove that the conduct did not infringe any provision of this
Chapter.