The initiative to amend the Labour Relations Act (LRA) and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) will take another giant leap when the bills are tabled in Parliament next week.
Department of Labour (DoL) Chief Director: Collective Bargaining Thembinkosi Mkalipi told a public briefing session in Cape Town today, April 5 that the two sets of legislation to be tabled in Parliament had sought to strike a balance between divergent views.
Mkalipi said although both business and labour were not happy with certain aspects of amendments, the bottom line was that the bills, “while protecting the vulnerable workers, they also, were business-friendly”.
The process to amend the LRA and BCEA started in 2009 and the process gathered momentum in 2010 during public hearings. The process later took a year of engagement at Nedlac with 30 meetings being held.
Mkalipi told the public briefing session that the bills were submitted to Nedlac together with regulatory impact study in terms of governance. He said this impact gauged the effect on regulation to business, labour and citizens of the country.
He said exceptions to the original bill submitted at Nedlac had been the issue of violence associated with strikes and essential services among others. He said these issues were raised at later stage by labour and business.
Mkalipi emphasised that the national public briefing session were an initiative to provide clarity on the two bills amended, any further inputs was the “discretion of Parliamentary process”.
“The process of negotiating the two remaining legislation, the Employment Equity Amendment Bill and the Employment Services Bill is expected to begin soon,” Mkalipi said.
The two bills that have been submitted to Parliament deals with: increased informalisation of labour in the labour market; adjust law to ensure compliance with SA’s obligation in terms of international labour standards; enhance the effectiveness of the labour market institutions such as the Labour Court, Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), the Essential Services Committee, the labour inspectorate and bargaining and statutory councils.
The bills also seek to ensure that labour legislation gives effect to fundamental Constitutional rights including the right to fair labour practices; and clarify uncertainties that have arisen from the interpretation and application of the LRA and BCEA in the past decade.
Mkalipi said the key element on amendments was the protection of vulnerable workers against abuse by labour brokers.
The amendments to LRA and BCEA seek to extend protection mainly to employees earning below the threshold of R172 000 per year. The exception with conditions, will apply to seasonal workers, probation workers and workers working on fixed projects.
He said 50% of CCMA cases showed that workers at the institution were not represented by trade unions, and do not have money to enforce their awards.
“It is no longer about who register an employee, but whether does a worker get the benefits he or she is entitled to,” Mkalipi said brokers or employers can no longer treat some employees less favourably for same or similar work performed.
Another key element was making decisions of the CCMA final and binding. The bills would also make it easier to dismiss high earners to help unblock the system with long drawn disputes.
Mkalipi dismissed suggestions that labour laws were inflexible, saying CCMA figures showed that there was a 60:40 ratio in decisions that were in favour of employers.
A key element in the amendments would be tackling violence associated with strikes and lock-outs. In terms of proposed changes workers would have to be balloted before embarking on strike and both parties should respect the picketing agreements which now extend to third party.
The public briefing sessions started in Johannesburg on Wednesday and the next session is scheduled for Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape Training Centre on April 17. Further public briefing sessions will be held later this month in other provinces. The public briefing sessions will conclude in Polokwane, at Meropa Casino on May 2.
Enquiries:
Thembinkosi Mkalipi
Cell: 082 854 4358
