Recently, South African company law underwent a dramatic overhaul through the
introduction of the Companies Act 71 of 2008. Central to company law is the promotion of
corporate governance: companies no longer are accountable to their shareholders only but
to society at large. Leaders should direct company strategy and operations with a view to
achieving the triple bottom-line (economic, social and environmental performance) and,
thus, should manage the business in a sustainable manner. An important question in
company law today: In whose interest should the company be managed?
Corporate governance needs to address the entire span of responsibilities to all
stakeholders of the company, such as customers, employees, shareholders, suppliers and
the community at large. The Companies Act aims to balance the rights and obligations of
shareholders and directors within companies and encourages the efficient and responsible
management of companies. The promotion of human rights is central in the application of
company law: it is extremely important given the significant role of enterprises within the
social and economic life of the nation.
The interests of various stakeholder groups in the context of the corporation as a “social
institution” should be enhanced and protected. Because corporations are a part of society
and the community they are required to be socially responsible and to be more
accountable to all stakeholders in the company. Although directors act in the best interests
of shareholders, collectively, they must also consider the interests of other stakeholders.
Sustainable relationships with all the relevant stakeholders are important. The advancement of social justice is important to corporations in that they should take into
account the Constitution, labour and company law legislation in dealing with social justice
issues.
Employees have become important stakeholders in companies and their needs should be
taken into account in a bigger corporate governance and social responsibility framework.
Consideration of the role of employees in corporations entails notice that the Constitution
grants every person a fundamental right to fair labour practices.
Social as well as political change became evident after South Africa's re-entry into the
world in the 1990s. Change to socio-economic conditions in a developing country is also
evident. These changes have a major influence on South African labour law. Like company
law, labour law, to a large extent, is codified. Like company law, no precise definition of
labour law exists. From the various definitions, labour law covers both the individual and
collective labour law and various role-players are involved. These role-players include trade
unions, employers/companies, employees, and the state. The various relationships
between these parties, ultimately, are what guides a certain outcome if there is a power
play between them.
In 1995 the South African labour market was transformed by the introduction of the
Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995. The LRA remains the primary piece of labour legislation
that governs labour law in South Africa. The notion of industrial democracy and the
transformation of the workplace are central issues in South African labour law. The
constitutional change that have taken place in South Africa, by which the protection of
human rights and the democratisation of the workplace are advanced contributed to these
developments. Before the enactment of the LRA, employee participation and voice were
much-debated topics, locally and internationally. In considering employee participation, it
is essential to take due cognisance of both the labour and company law principles that are
pertinent: the need for workers to have a voice in the workplace and for employers to
manage their corporations. Employee participation and voice should be evident at different levels: from informationsharing
to consultation to joint decision-making. Corporations should enhance systems and
processes that facilitate employee participation and voice in decisions that affect
employees.
The primary research question under investigation is: What role should (and could)
employees play in corporate decision-making in South Africa? The main inquiry of the
thesis, therefore, is to explore the issue of granting a voice to employees in companies, in
particular, the role of employees in the decision-making processes of companies.
The thesis explores various options, including supervisory co-determination as well as
social co-determination, in order to find solutions that will facilitate the achievement of
employee participation and voice in companies in South Africa. / LLD, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/14902 |
| Date | January 2015 |
| Creators | Botha, Monray Marsellus |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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