On Wednesday 6 October, the RMI circulated a newsflash informing our members of the COSATU protest that took place on 7 October 2021 (see newsflash below).
As stated in the newsflash, the protest was arranged in accordance with the requirements of section 77 of the Labour Relations Act (LRA) and consequently enjoyed protection in terms of section 67 of the LRA.
Section 67 of the LRA deals with the protection of employees when participating in a “protected strike“. The protection granted to employees means that employers may not dismiss an employee merely on the basis of participating in a strike or for any conduct in furtherance of the strike. This means that employees may elect to:
- Stay away from work on the day of the strike to participate;
- March and protest; and
- Picket with placard demonstrations, etc.
Once an employee elected to participate in a strike, and consequently is absent from work during the period of the strike, the principle of “no work, no pay“ applies and an employer is not obliged to remunerate such employees.
Employers are however not precluded from fairly dismissing an employee for reasons related to the employee’s conduct during the strike. This means that although the employee is allowed to participate in a strike, the general rules and standards of the employer‘s disciplinary code still applies to the employee. Employees whose conduct during a protected strike are in breach of the employer’s disciplinary code may be charged with misconduct and ultimately dismissed if warranted.
Should members have any questions or queries in this regard, please contact any one of the RMI’s IR Specialists, deployed at our various regional offices.
-Johannesburg
IR specialist: Aphelele Tapile
Cell: 066 286 8272
-Pretoria
IR specialist: Tsepo Mohlakoana
Cell: 079 086 8623
-Cape Town
IR specialist: Brent Barichievy
Cell: 082 5606622
IR specialist: Johanita Olivier
Cell: 079 890 6614
-Bloemfontein
IR specialist: Marie Ellis
Cell: 082 448 0467
-Port Elizabeth
IR specialist: Eckhardt Oelofse
Cell: 079 884 2384
-Durban
IR specialist: Janina Kalidass
Cell: 081 779 0444
