Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Arts (Industrial Psychology) Johannesburg 1995 / The present research investigates the experience of involuntary job loss in a sample of white-collar workers. In addition, their perceptions of', and attitudes towards a preventive intervention, namely, outplacement, is explored. A review of the current literature on job loss and secondary formal interventions is discussed, which provides the basis for the present study. Findings support previous research, in addition to raising certain issues and providing suggestions which result in an expansion of present knowledge with regard to Outplacement. / MT2017

Thesis (LLM. (Labour Law)) -- University of Limpopo, 2014 / Constructive dismissal comes into the equation when an employer behaves in such a manner that eventually and ultimately leads to the employee, being the receiving party, in the employment relationship, to terminate the employment contract. This termination must be the direct result of the conduct of the employer that irreparably frustrated the relationship and made it impossible for the employee to remain in the service of the employer in question. The law of constructive dismissal requires a balance between the competing interests of employees and employers. The employee is the one who makes the claim and determines whether to accept the changes made to his position or to resign and seek damages for wrongful dismissal. A factor which creates further uncertainty is that the employee also controls when to make the claim. Although the employee has greater control over constructive dismissal claims, an employer can take steps to limit the risk of an employee making a claim of constructive dismissal.

Economies worldwide have become more integrated and competitive due to the phenomenon of globalisation and its antecedents, which are improved technological communication, the use of technology in production, ever improving management of skills as well as standards of education. Amongst the consequences have been changing demands and rising expectations in terms of employee remuneration, job security and conditions of work. This has at the same time been accompanied by employers expecting greater profit. Against this backdrop, this treatise seeks to interrogate and to explain the processes that should constitute fair, rational and justifiable employee dismissal for operational purposes. This is done bearing in mind the global economic crisis and its impact on employees. The treatise constitutes an attempt to carve a cushioning mechanism for employees in the midst of the global economic storm. We consider the inadequacies of common law principles. We also submit that section 189 in its present form and its application by courts do not provide for substantive fairness interrogation when dealing with dismissal for operational reasons. We explore the legislative framework, interpretation by leading academics as well as applications by courts of section 189A, which prescribes that if dismissal is based on operational reasons, consideration must not only be based on substantive and procedural fairness but also that proper consideration of alternatives must have been explored before dismissal is effected.

Section 187(2)(b) of the Labour Relations Act sets out certain justifications for what may seem to be unfair discrimination in the workplace. The purpose of this note is to discuss the provisions of Age Discrimination, with specific focus on the rights of older employees, who have reached, what some might term, the ‘normal or agreed retirement age’. In the discuss which follows reference will be made to the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa1 in order to investigate the provisions of our new democratic era, and what is said therein about discrimination, and age discrimination in particular. In our new Constitutional dispensation there have also been circumstances where certain kinds of discrimination have become accepted on society, for example Affirmative Action, and an enquiry into the difference between discrimination and differentiation will therefore also be necessary. The provisions of the Employment Equity Act,2 which deal specifically with eliminating unfair discrimination in the workplace, and the Labour Relations Act,3 which deals primarily with the rights of employees, employers and trade unions, and seeks to harmonize employer-employee relations will be discussed wherein specific reference will be made to section 187(2)(b) of the LRA. A further discussion will outline the circumstances of what is meant by dismissal in the context of age based dismissals, and whether such a dismissal is infact a dismissal and whether, within the requirements of the LRA such a dismissal, or termination of employment contract, is infact fair. Furthermore, a comparative perspective of other jurisdictions will give a more complete understanding of the issue of age-based dismissals within the current context. However, to refer to legislation and foreign decisions alone, while being of important reference, is not enough and a enquiry into our own case law will be of significant importance to determine a path of direction one can expect when faced with a question of dismissals based on mandatory retirement ages, and in particular, a dismissal which has been so executed with recourse to section 187(2)(b) of the LRA. In the various cases the reasoning and rationale behind the decision making will shed light on a seemingly unresolved area of labour law, and in reading further not only in the judgments but also in various articles, one will see that there are many arguments for and against the use of a mandatory retirement age, the most important of which will be highlighted.

Section 157 of the LRA provides for the nature and extent of the Labour Courts jurisdiction. This provision has been subjected to extensive interpretation by the Judiciary and the various interpretations of the courts have not been entirely consistent. Specific mention is made of the relevance and applicability of section 157(1) and (2) of the LRA regarding the overlap between administrative law and contractual law into labour law. Reference will be made to case law specifically dealing with cases concerning the jurisdiction of the civil courts and labour courts where cases concerning employment and labour matters were brought either in terms of the PAJA or on the basis of contract law. The question arose whether matters which appear to be quintessential labour matters but simultaneously also capable of being entertained on the basis of the PAJA or in terms of contract law are matters which, generally, in terms of section 157(1) of the LRA fall within the exclusive preserve of the Labour Court or, in terms of section 157(2) of the LRA, fall within the concurrent jurisdiction of the High Court and the Labour Court. The discussion which follows will also include reference to the current legal position pertaining to the prohibition of public sector employees from pressing their claims relating to employment or labour matters in the civil courts on the basis of the PAJA as decided in the Chirwa v Transnet Ltd (2008) 2 BLLR 97 (CC) and; the impact thereof on employees pressing claims pertaining to employment and labour matters in the civil courts on the basis of contract law. In addition the similarity of considerations which are common to both administrative law and contract law regarding the “overlap” of each into labour law will be considered and discussed. In the light of the discussion which follows agreement will be expressed with certain decisions of the High Court and the SCA where civil courts were held to retain jurisdiction to entertain common law contractual claims concerning labour and iv employment matters as opposed to restricting all employment and labour matters to the forums established under the LRA and to claims and remedies which are provided for by the LRA.

no abstract available / Jurisprudence / M.A. (Spesialisering in Arbeidsreg)

D.Phil. / Prior to the democratic elections in 1994, South Africa had a "captive" market. There were regulations that were specifically designed to protect South African organisations. There were various tariffs and taxes imposed on foreign organisations that did business in South Africa. After the democratic elections, South Africa introduced market reforms that resulted in the country being part of globalization. The globalization process brought about significant changes. South African organisations had an opportunity to expand their business opportunities, but at the same time they were faced with competition from other organisations from different parts of the world ...

Work plays a dominant role in modern society. It is through work that the economic well being of any society is sustained. Workers who perform various tasks contribute to the well being of society as well as to their betterment as individuals. Thus paid employment has assumed a prominent role in modern society. It is an incentive on individuals to contribute to socio-economic welfare, while their needs and aspirations as individuals are also satisfied. But for an orderly society to exist, there has to be a subjection of some members of society by others, a division between those who have the social mandate (express or tacit) to exercise power for and on behalf of others. Thus work relations comprise those who exercise managerial power(employers) and those subject to managerial power (employees). In broader political relations, the task of social management is performed by the state. However those exercising managerial functions do not have unfettered discretion. Power should be exercised within acceptable social limits and be used to achieve realistic social goals. Thus it has been felt that the laws should always ensure that the incumbents of governmental power do not exceed the scope of their power or abuse it. Hence the process of judicial review. This gives the courts the power to review the decisions of administrative authorities in order to protect individual citizens who might be adversely affected by bad administrative decisions. This analogy has been applied in employment relations in order to protect individual employees against arbitrary dismissal by employers. It has been held that an employee cannot be dismissed without a valid reason and in compliance with a fair procedure. The question asked here is whether this is sufficient to ensure substantive employment protection. Is judicial review really effective in employment relations? It is observed that judicial review in labour law has many limitations as compared to the administrative law context. First, it comes face to face with the problem of the public/private law distinction, which holds the employment relationship to be fundamentally a private relationship between the employer and employee. This complicates the application of public law remedies in supposedly private relations, where the parties are assumed to have freedom of contract. The second problem involves the debate as to whether the state should impose many restrictions on the modern corporation or there should be minimal state intervention to allow the corporation to function in accordance with the labour market demands and economic necessity. It is concluded that the law of unfair dismissal has consequently been put in a dilemma. While the need has been perceived to curb the arbitrary use of managerial power by employers, substantive employment protection can hardly be guaranteed. The problem seems to be that of striking the balance between the interests of employees, employers and society at large. / Thesis (LL.M.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1995.

no abstract available / Jurisprudence / M.A. (Spesialisering in Arbeidsreg)

M.Com. (Human Resource Management) / Studies clearly show that workers experience trauma when organizations rationalise. These traumatic experiences are found to be primarily due to the uncertainty of what will happen to workers and the impact rationalisation could have on their job security. This has led to the assumption that rationalisation is inevitably traumatic. This study is aimed at dispelling this assumption as a myth. The view is taken that human and organizational behavior is complex, in that a variety of interactions between management and workers is not only possible, but does in fact occur in organizations today. This study considers various approaches organizations follow in dealing with workers during a rationalisation program. This study also investigates the experiences of workers who have actually lost their jobs. The results indicate beyond doubt that the experiences of trauma associated with rationalisation programmes are strongly related to the approaches adopted by management during such programmeso Worker trauma is therefore not a condition of rationalisation, but rather the result of a particular approach followed by management. The results of this study could have a profound effect on how organizations approach rationalisation. The benefits of a reduction in industrial and legal action due the approach adopted by management during rationalisation, is obvious. What is less obvious, but possibly more important however, is the level of loyalty and work performance of those workers remaining in the service of the organization. Studies have demonstrated the devastating impact of an unsatisfactory approach followed by management during rationalisation, on the work performance and loyalty towards the company of remaining workers. In order to succeed or survive, organizations must continually adjust to an everchanging environment. This would no doubt include the need for an effective rationalisation program...