South Africa: Industrial relations

Original and updating authors: Helen Wilsenach and Pascale Towers, Bowmans

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Summary

• All workers have a constitutional right to form and join trade unions and participate in union activities and programmes. (See Trade unions and union recognition)
• Collective agreements play a key role in regulation of the employment relationship in many sectors of the economy. (See Collective bargaining and agreements)
• Employers are obliged to consult employees or, where applicable, their trade union representatives, on a number of specific issues. (See Informing and consulting employees - general)
• Employers are obliged to follow a process of consultation before making a decision to dismiss one or more employees for reasons based on operational requirements. (See Informing and consulting prior to redundancies)
• There are no statutory requirements for the old employer (the transferor) or the new employer (the transferee) to inform and consult employees or trade unions about business transfers. (See Informing and consulting prior to transfers)
• Employees have a right to strike and employers have a right to conduct a lock-out. (See Industrial action and picketing)