The author analyzes the current status of freedom of association in Latin America, specifically collective bargaining and the different schemes this institution presents itself after the neoliberal policies of economic deregulation took place in the decade of nineteen ninety. / El autor analiza la situación de la libertad sindical en América Latin, específicamente la negociación colectiva y los distintos modelos en los que esta se presenta luego de las políticas neoliberales de desregulación económica de la década de mil novecientos noventa.

The primary purpose of this treatise is to reexamine the South African labour dispute resolution bodies to see if they live up to the legislation’s promise of promoting social justice in conciliation, arbitration and con-arb processes concluded by them. The study defines social justice and examines this term in relation to employment law. The promotion of social justice was reaffirmed by the International Labour Organisation in its 1944 Conference which was later incorporated into its Constitution. The study briefly reviews the importance of this conference of the 10 May 1944 in relation to promoting social justice. The study also examines the social justice in the context of South African employment laws by briefly analyzing each South African labour legislation and the Constitution. This analysis is based on the provisions of legislation and considers if the respective provisions promote social justice as required by the International Labour Organisation’s Constitution and later by the South African Constitution. In analyzing the Constitution, and other legislation like the; Employment Equity Act (EEA), and Labour Relations Act (LRA), the treatise examines certain cases that were determined under the legislation from social justice perspective. The Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 represents one of the major reforms of the labour relations system in South Africa. It is guided by the Constitution in terms of promoting social justice. The LRA established the dispute resolution bodies that are mandated by the legislation to resolve labour disputes. The study examines the systems and the processes employed by these bodies mainly the Commission for Conciliation; Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) and the Bargaining Councils to determine if these systems are promoting social justice as required by the legislation. In conducting this analysis the study considers not only the processes adopted but also the manner in which the relevant dispute resolution bodies market their services; their strategies and operational plans; and accessibility and more. The study further investigates the challenges that these bodies are faced with that have a negative impact on their responsibility to promote social justice. These challenges faced by society range from unemployment, the level of literacy and the growing inequality within South African society. They constantly pose a challenge and require these bodies to consistently devise means and strategies to overcome them. A limited comparative study is undertaken in order to determine whether South Africa can learn anything from another country. There are several countries that may have been chosen to conduct this study but the study considered the fact that it needs to look at the country without the sub-Saharan Africa. The country that shares a history similar to South Africa due to the fact that the social challenges faced by the South African society might be similar to those faced by the country chosen. In this research Namibia was chosen as a suitable country to determine whether there is something to learn from it or not. In conclusion it is submitted that South African legislation pertaining to labour dispute resolution needs to constantly evolve in order to promote social justice challenges of the time.

Text in Afrikaans / Summaries in English and Afrikaans / The statutory definition of the lock-out encompasses certain acts (inter alia termination of contracts of employment) which must be executed by the employer with a certain purpose. The Appellate Division has recently found that the employment relationship not necessarily terminates similarly to the common law contract of employment, but may subsist after termination of the contract of employment. The industrial court does not easily accept that it has been deprived of its unfair labour practice jurisdiction where terminations of employment take place in consequence of a lock-out. The motive of the employer seems to be decisive. In line with both the trend in first world countries and principles established by the courts in South Africa, the Constitution and especially recent labour legislation significantly curtail the bargaining power of the employer because it is progressively being believed that the employer has sufficient economic power to his disposal. / Die omskrywing van die uitsluiting in wetgewing omvat sekere handelinge {onder andere beeindiging van dienskontrakte) wat deur die werkgewer met 'n sekere doel verrig moet word. Die Appelhof het onlangs beslis dat die diensverhouding na beeindiging van die dienskontrak kan bly voortduur en nie noodwendig soos die gemeenregtelike dienskontrak ten einde loop nie. Die nywerheidshof aanvaar ook nie geredelik dat hy in geval van diensbeeindiging wat volg op 'n uitsluiting van sy onbillike arbeidspraktyk jurisdiksie ontneem is nie. Die motief van die werkgewer blyk hier deurslaggewend te wees. In lyn met sowel die ne1g1ng in eerstew~reldse lande, asook beginsels reeds deur die howe in Suid-Afrika gevestig, word die bedingingsmag van die werkgewer ingevolge die Grondwet en veral onlangse arbeidswetgewing betekenisvol ingekort omrede toenemend aanvaar word dat die werkgewer oor voldoende ekonomiese mag beskik. / Law / LL.M.

Text in Afrikaans / Organised trade unionism in the South African education sector is a new phenomenon. In this study the emergence and development of Coloured professional teacher associations and teacher trade unions is researched. Although Coloured teacher associations like the Teachers' League were great exponents of professionalism, they nevertheless showed characteristics of modern trade unionism. The development of Coloured professional teacher associations and trade unions is discussed against the background of their quest for teacher unity in South Africa. Since the establishment of the Teachers' League in 1913, the policy of Coloured teacher organizations on teacher unity underwent a remarkable change from mainly ethnic teacher unity (1913-1969) to unity across ethnic divisions (since the late seventies). This policy shift is contextualised in the ever changing political, social and economic milieu in South Africa. Finally recommendations on the professional teacher association enterprise and teacher trade unionism in South Africa is given. / Die georganiseerde vakbondwese in die Suid-Afrikaanse onderwys is 'n nuwe verskynsel. In die studie is die ontstaan en ontwikkeling van die Bruin onderwysverenigingsbedryf en onderwysvakbondwese in Suid­ Afrika nagevors. Alhoewel die vroeere Bruin professionele onderwysverenigings soos die Teachers' League 'n sterk professionle karakter getoon het, het hulle kerumerke van die moderne vakbondwese, veral ten aansien van hul salarisonderhandelinge met onderwysowerhede, geopenbaar wat deurgaans in die verhandeling belig is. Die metabletiese ondersoek na Bruin professionele onderwysverenigings en -vakbonde is onderneem teen die agtergrond van hul etniese en nie-etniese eenheidstrewe in die onderwys. Die eenheidstrewe van Bruin onderwysersverenigings het 'n merkwaardige verruiming sedert die onstaan van die TLSA in 1913 ondergaan - 'n aspek wat in die lig van die deurlopende veranderende sosiale, politieke en ekonomiese klimaat in Suid-Afrika belig is. Ten slotte word aanbevelings ten opsigte van die onderwysverenigingsbedryf en die onderwysvakbondwese in die nuwe Suid-Afrika gemaak. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Historiese Opvoedkunde)

In the sphere of labour and employment, "prerogative" is usually taken to refer to the "right to manage" an organisation. The right can be divided into those decisions which relate to the utilisation of the human resources of the organisation and decisions of an "economic" or "business" nature. This thesis focuses on the first category of decisionmaking. It is generally accepted by employers and trade unions that employers have the right to manage employees. The legal basis for this right is to be found in the contract of employment which has as one of its elements the subordination of the employee to the authority of the employer. This element affords the employer the legal right to give instructions and creates the legal duty for the employee to obey these instructions. Employers' right to manage is, however, neither fixed nor static. The main purpose of this thesis is to determine the extent of employers' right to manage employees. This is done by examining the restrictions imposed by the law {ie common law and legislation) and collective bargaining. The examination is accordingly focussed on what is Jett of employer prerogative. A number of conclusions are drawn from the examination. One of the most important conclusions reached is that, although most of an employer's common law decisionmaking powers have been statutorily regulated, none have been rescinded. The employer has accordingly retained its decision-making power, albeit in a more restricted or limited form. This makes further restriction of its decision-making power through contractual or statutory provisions or collective bargaining possible. It, however, also makes the lessening or even the total removal of these restrictions through future statutory provisions or collective bargaining possible. / Law / LL.D.

This article addresses the issue about the application of Facultative Arbitration and its effect on the redirection of negotiable behaviors of business and gremials organizations in order to achieve some previous agreement before they submitted to an arbitral tribunal. Furthermore, the authors compare the effects of the strike concept variation on the qualification of this like legal or illegal and its relationship with the emergence of Facultative Arbitration that, as an exceptional measure, complement the collective negotiation. / El presente artículo trata sobre la aplicación del Arbitraje Potestativo y su efecto en la redirección de las conductas negociales de las organizaciones gremiales y empresariales a fin de que logren un acuerdo previo antes de someterse a un tribunal arbitral. Asimismo, los autores comparan los efectos de la variación del concepto del derecho a la huelga en la calificación de esta como legal o ilegal y su relación con la aparición del Arbitraje Potestativo que, como medida excepcional, complementa la negociación colectiva.

The Federal Constitution of 1988 established a long list of rights and guarantees minimum standards for worker protection, to comply with the fundamentals of the Brazilian Federative Republic, embodied in the scope of human dignity and social value of the work. In this sense it is objective of labor law, by establishing principles and rules protective of working relationship, enable achievement of decent conditions for workers, especially in view of the employee be subject hipossuficiente the employment relationship. It is well to see that in the meantime so delicate relationship, collective negotiation arises as a mechanism to promote dialogue and provide adjustment of the different interests involved, since it has ductile nature to obtain optimal solutions, and should establish social bases minimum for good living and well being of the characters of the capital/labor ratio, the prospect that they contribute as partners in the economic development of the country. Collective negociation (and its possible fruits Conventions and Collective Negociation Agreements) should be through enforcement of the fundamental rights of workers. There is no other reason that the International Labour Organization recommends that collective bargaining is a fundamental right essential to the exercise of democracy and social dialogue. In the parental right to attempt collective bargaining is mandatory and must precede the collective bargaining agreement, according predicts Article 114, §§ 1st and 2nd, CF/88. However, important to note that collective bargaining can not result in undue benefits designed to meet unique interests of certain unions, to the detriment of the fundamental rights of workers. In this vein, the CF/88 while recognizing the institution of collective negociation as a fundamental right (item XXVI), establishes some parameters of what can be its object. So it is that in items of art. 7 of the Charter Biggest predicts that the wages (section VI) and workload (sections XIII and XIV) can be modified within the scope of collective negociation. Importantly, however, in everyday life we observe the existence of collective norms that deviate from the essence that should guide collective negociation. Therefore highly relevant research regarding its limits, through the possibility of cancellation of unfair terms, thus raising the debate with regard to the availability of workers´ rights at collective negociation´s headquarters. / A Constituição Federal de 1988 estabeleceu um extenso rol de direitos e garantias mínimas para proteção do trabalhador, visando cumprir os fundamentos da República Federativa Brasileira, consubstanciado no alcance da dignidade da pessoa humana e da valorização social do trabalho. Nesse sentido é objetivo do Direito do Trabalho, através do estabelecimento de princípios e regras protetivos da relação de trabalho, proporcionar o alcance de condições dignas para o trabalhador, mormente tendo em vista ser o empregado sujeito hipossuficiente na relação empregatícia. É bem de ver que no ínterim de tão delicada relação, a negociação coletiva surge como um mecanismo autocompositivo de promover o diálogo e proporcionar o ajuste dos diferentes interesses dos envolvidos, uma vez que possui natureza dúctil na obtenção de soluções ideais, devendo estabelecer bases sociais mínimas para o bom convívio e bem estar dos personagens da relação capital/trabalho, na perspectiva de que eles contribuam como parceiros no desenvolvimento econômico do país. A negociação coletiva (sendo seus possíveis frutos as Convenções e os Acordos Coletivos de Trabalho) deve constituir meio de efetivação dos direitos fundamentais dos trabalhadores. Não é por outra razão que a Organização Internacional do Trabalho preconiza que a negociação coletiva é um direito fundamental essencial para o exercício da democracia e do diálogo social. No direito pátrio a tentativa da negociação coletiva é obrigatória e deve anteceder ao dissídio coletivo, conforme vaticina o artigo 114, §§ 1º e 2º, da CF/88. No entanto, importante ressaltar que a negociação coletiva não pode resultar em benefícios indevidos destinados a atender interesses exclusivos de determinados sindicatos, em prejuízo dos direitos fundamentais dos trabalhadores. Nessa senda, a CF/88 ao passo que reconhece o instituto da negociação coletiva como direito fundamental (inciso XXVI), estabelece alguns parâmetros do que pode ser seu objeto. Assim é que nos incisos do art. 7º a Carta Maior vaticina que o salário (inciso VI) e a jornada de trabalho (incisos XIII e XIV) podem ser modificados no âmbito da negociação coletiva. É importante frisar que, entretanto, no cotidiano se observa a existência de normas coletivas que se afastam da essência que deve nortear a negociação coletiva. Por isso, de grande relevância a pesquisa a respeito dos seus limites, passando pela possibilidade de anulação de tais cláusulas abusivas, levantando, assim, o debate no que diz respeito à disponibilidade dos direitos dos trabalhadores em sede de negociação coletiva.

La négociation collective a connu une évolution profonde de ses enjeux. Elle ne vise plus seulement à pallier les inégalités inhérentes à la relation de travail individuelle ; en raison de la promotion de la démocratie sociale, elle s'inscrit désormais dans une logique d'accompagnement du pouvoir de l'employeur. A cette fin, le niveau de négociation de l'entreprise est privilégié. La qualité des négociateurs a été précisée et les règles entourant le processus de négociation renforcées, pour parvenir à plus de légitimité de la nonne conventionnelle. Partant, les obstacles à l'application des conventions et accords collectifs sont remis en cause. Dans l'articulation de la convention collective et du contrat de travail, le principe de faveur est affaibli. L'intérêt du salarié pris individuellement recule au profit de la collectivité de travail dans laquelle il s'inscrit. L'intangibilité du contenu obligationnel du contrat de travail régresse elle aussi. Les dispositifs mis en place par la jurisprudence et le législateur pour forcer l'application d'un accord collectif contraire à une stipulation contractuelle se sont multipliés. La protection des droits fondamentaux apparaît désormais comme la seule limite infranchissable à la suprématie de la convention collective vis-à-vis du contrat de travail. / Collective bargaining bas been characterised by a deep evolution of its issues. Today its purpose is not only to decrease the inequalities related to the individual employment relationship: because of the promotion of the social democracy, collective bargaining should be also able to support the decision-making power of the employer so that the company level of bargaining is privileged. In order to make the provisions issued of collective bargaining as legitimate as possible, the quality of negotiators has been defined in detail as well as the rules related to the bargaining procedure have been reinforced. Nevertheless, the limits related to the application of the collective agreements are questioned. Within the articulation between the collective agreement and the employment contract "the favourability principle" is actually weakened and the individual interest of the employee is undermined in order to put forward the one of the whole work community. The inviolability of the binding dispositions provided by the employment contract is also receding. Number of rules have been introduced by the case law and the legislator in order to increase the in1plementation of the collective agreement provisions to the detriment of the individual employment contract. Thus the protection of fundamental rights seems the only impassable limit to the supremacy of the collective agreement on the employment contract.

Si les mutations technologiques questionnent l’exercice classique des droits d’action collective, elles renforcent également leur nécessaire existence. La transformation de l’environnement de travail, par l’introduction de nouvelles technologies dans les entreprises et par l’utilisation de ces dernières comme outils de travail ou de communication, invite à repenser l’exercice de ces droits. D’une part, les technologies peuvent servir d’instruments à l’action collective. Elles sont alors susceptibles de prolonger le pouvoir d’agir de ceux qui les utilisent en leur offrant la possibilité d’agir différemment, de communiquer ou de faire pression sur l’entreprise autrement. D’autre part, l’introduction dans l’entreprise des technologies, la mise en place de nouveaux modes d’organisation du travail au moyen des technologies et l’utilisation de ces dernières, emportent un certain nombre de risques pour la communauté de travail. La mise en œuvre des droits d’action collective vise alors à prévenir ces risques et, le cas échéant, à réagir lorsque le risque se réalise. La création de nouvelles communautés de travail, qui n’auraient pu exister sans les technologies, nécessite encore que soient exercés des droits d’action collective pour défendre les intérêts de leurs membres. Il n’en reste pas moins que le régime juridique applicable à l’action collective ne permet pas forcément de répondre à tous ces enjeux. Explorant la manière dont s’appliquent les droits d’action collective dans un environnement exposé aux mutations technologiques, cette étude propose également des pistes d’évolution du droit applicable à l’action collective que les mutations technologiques mettent à l’épreuve. / If technological mutations challenge the classic exercise of collective action rights, they also reinforce their necessary existence. The transformation of the working environment, by the introduction of new technologies in companies and the use of them as working or communication tools, leads to rethink the exercise of these rights. On one hand, technologies can be used as instruments for collective action. Then, they are likely to extend the power of those who use them by offering them the opportunity to act differently, to communicate or to put pressure on the company differently. On the other hand, the introduction of technologies into the company, the implementation of new ways of organizing the work through technologies and the use of them, introduce risks for the working community. Therefore, the implementation of the rights of collective action aims to prevent these risks and, if necessary, to react when the risk is realized. The creation of new working communities, which could not have existed without the technologies, still requires that rights of collective action be provided to defend the interests of their members. Nonetheless, the legal regime for collective action does not necessarily meet all of these issues. While exploring the way in which collective action rights apply in an environment exposed to technological mutations, this thesis also proposes avenues of evolution of the law applicable to collective action that technological mutations put to the test.

D’abord cantonnés au secteur industriel, les groupes de sociétés se sont progressivement développés dans l’ensemble des secteurs d’activités et sont devenus en quelques années des acteurs incontournables de la vie économique et sociale. Le regroupement d’entreprises sous la domination d’une société-mère s’est accompagné d’une recherche d’unité dans les modes de gestion et les statuts sociaux déployés dans chaque entreprise les composant. C’est dans ce contexte que s’est développée la négociation d’accords de groupe. De simple expérimentation issue de la pratique, la négociation collective de groupe est devenue un véritable niveau de négociation collective reconnue par le législateur. L’accord de groupe est désormais consacré comme une norme créatrice de droits et d’obligations entre employeurs et salariés du groupe, mais sa place dans la hiérarchie des normes n’a pas été précisée. Cette situation génère de nombreuses interrogations quant à sa portée et à ses limites : chaque apport du législateur à la construction du régime juridique des accords de groupe soulève de nouvelles difficultés avec lesquelles les partenaires sociaux doivent composer. La présente étude tentera de mettre en évidence les solutions proposées par les partenaires sociaux pour affiner et sécuriser le régime juridique applicable aux accords de groupe. / Originally confined to the industrial sector, corporate groups have gradually developed in all sectors and have become in just a few years key players in economic and social life. The business combination under supervision of parent company was accompanied by a search for unity in management methods and employees’ status. The negotiation of group agreements has developed in this context. Simple hands-on experience at the beginning, group collective bargaining has become a real level of collective bargaining recognized by the legislator. The group agreement is now set out as a standard which establishing rights and obligations between employers and employees of the group, but its place in the hierarchy of norms has not been specified. This situation generates many questions about its scope and its limits: each legislator’s contribution to the group agreements’ legal regime raises new difficulties that the social partners have to deal with. This study will attempt to identify the solutions proposed by the social partners in order to refine and secure the group agreements’ legal regime.