By Ivan Israelstam, Chief Executive of Labour Law Management Consulting. He may be contacted on (011) 888-7944 or 0828522973 or on e-mail address: ivan@labourlawadvice.co.za. Go to: www.labourlawvideos.co.za
Section 186(2) of the Labour Relations Act (LRA) includes under unfair labour practices unfair acts or omissions relating to employee benefits. However, this is no longer confined to obvious benefits such as pension schemes and medical aid. It also applies to any contractual right or employer undertaking that, in the broadest sense, could benefit employees.
For example, in the case of SAPU obo Louw vs SAPS (2005, 1 BALR 22) the arbitrator found that failure to pay the employee a merit award did fall within the definition of an unfair practice relating to benefits. This is despite the decision of another arbitrator made at the same forum a little earlier that payments of merit awards do not fall into the definition of unfair labour practices.
At the root of many ‘unfair’ practices is the employer’s attempt to avoid costs. There is nothing wrong per se with an employer avoiding costs, as long as the employee does not lose out unfairly as a result. Thus, an employer may be entitled to protect its interests or save money by changing the employee’s benefits provided that any loss to the employee is justified.
In the matter of Independent Electoral Commission vs National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union obo Members (Lex Info 16 March 2026. Labour Court case No: JR1446/22) the employer had agreed with the union to implement the results of a job grading exercise. However, when implementation time came, the employer stated that it could not implement all the new grades because it did not have the funds to pay the increased salaries that would result from it.
The union succeeded with an unfair labour practice dispute at the CCMA under the heading of unfair provision of benefits. On review the Labour Court found that the IEC was alleged by the union to have approved and adopted a policy and to have proceeded to implement portions of it, using its discretion regarding which parts to implement; and that this allegation validly constituted one relating to unfair provision of benefits.
The Court therefore ordered the employer to implement all the job grading results despite the fact that it did not have the funds to do so.
This finding means that all workplace decision makers need to be trained to understand the law of unfair labour practices and the broadness of the scope of this legislation. Decision makers also need to understand the consequences of agreeing to changes that the employer cannot afford to make.
The innovative video series WALKING THE LABOUR LAW TIGHTROPE assists employers to provide their managers with very inexpensive training that allows the managers to achieve crucial labour relations knowhow at times suitable to their very busy schedules. Its 48 chapters, averaging 10 minutes in length each, can easily be watched at junctures when the manager has time. This greatly informative yet very engaging and practical video series provides crucial and user-friendly learning through the use of a stimulating, animated case study that runs throughout the 48-chapter series. Each chapter contains clear and important advice needed by workplace management on the basics of labour law over a very wide range of topics.
A further advantage is that the manager can, for a full year, easily go back to any of the 48 videos for purposes of refresher training or in order to access information on how to deal with a current workplace issue. This solves the problem of managers forgetting what they have learned.
This video series helps management to walk the shaky labour law tightrope and to run the workplace productively without falling into the labour law abyss.
To access our groundbreaking video series: WALKING THE NEW LABOUR LAW TIGHTROPE please go to www.labourlawvideos.co.za or contact Ivan on ivan@labourlawadvice.co.za
