Facilitating Decent Work: The Case of Domestic Workers in Nigeria

by | May 25, 2023 | ILJ, ILJ V43 I2

Facilitating Decent Work: The Case of Domestic Workers in Nigeria

Author Abigail Osiki

ISSN: 2413-9874
Affiliations: Lecturer, Department of Mercantile and Labour Law, University of the Western Cape; PhD (University of the Western Cape)
Source: Industrial Law Journal, Volume 43 Issue 2, 2022, p. 726 – 750

Abstract

A decade after the first international standard regulating domestic work was introduced decent work remains a challenge for domestic workers in Nigeria. Within the framework of ILO’s Convention on Domestic Workers 189 of 2011, this article explores the extent to which domestic workers in Nigeria benefit from legal protection. The article argues that although parts of Nigerian labour law are relevant to domestic workers, there is need for the development of regulation which gives full effect to the provisions of the convention. The country’s de facto exclusion of domestic workers from the national minimum wage and social protection laws as well as regulatory gaps in dealing with safety in the workplace remains problematic for domestic workers. Against this background, this article suggests the development of a regulatory model which would facilitate the achievement of decent work Nigerian domestic workers.

Unfair Discrimination on the Ground of Family Responsibility

by | May 25, 2023 | ILJ, ILJ V43 I2

Unfair Discrimination on the Ground of Family Responsibility

Author Wilhelmina Germishuys-Burchell

ISSN: 2413-9874
Affiliations: Senior Lecturer, University of South Africa; BCOM LLB (UP), LLM (UNISA)
Source: Industrial Law Journal, Volume 43 Issue 2, 2022, p. 751 – 778

Abstract

At a time when dual-earner households are the norm, South African workplaces continue to be structured around the idea of family as the nuclear family and the gendered and obsolete assumption that workers come without family responsibilities. Despite the clear duty that labour legislation, including recent amendments, places on employers to accommodate employees’ efforts to balance work with family responsibilities, the failure to do so remains a prevalent form of unfair discrimination in South African workplaces today. The potential of family responsibility as a discriminatory ground remains largely unutilised. The article seeks to investigate what seems to be a reluctance by employees to interrogate family-hostile working conditions. It also considers issues relating to family responsibility discrimination and its intersection with other discriminatory grounds. In addition, the article also briefly considers international and foreign comparative developments that may provide some valuable insights into potential issues associated with family responsibility jurisprudence of relevance for South Africa.

Case Note: The Hybrid Contract of Employment: A Tale of (Mostly) Unreported Judgments

by | May 25, 2023 | ILJ, ILJ V43 I2

Case Note: The Hybrid Contract of Employment: A Tale of (Mostly) Unreported Judgments

Author Rochelle le Roux

ISSN: 2413-9874
Affiliations: Professor, Department of Commercial Law, University of Cape Town
Source: Industrial Law Journal, Volume 43 Issue 2, 2022, p. 779 – 786

Abstract

In Buthelezi v Municipal Demarcation Board the Labour Appeal Court (LAC) held that it is per se substantively unfair to retrench an employee who is employed on a truly fixed-term contract. This note seeks to establish whether the same applies in the case of the termination of a hybrid contract of employment (ie a fixed-term contract of employment that provides for termination on notice during the term of the contract).

Some Issues in Relation to the Incidence of Common Law Fiduciary Accountability in Relationships of Employment

by | May 25, 2023 | ILJ, ILJ V43 I1

Some Issues in Relation to the Incidence of Common Law Fiduciary Accountability in Relationships of Employment

Author Kathy Idensohn

ISSN: 2413-9874
Affiliations: Department of Commercial Law, Faculty of Law, University of Cape Town
Source: Industrial Law Journal, Volume 43 Issue 1, 2022, p. 1 – 16

Abstract

This article considers three inter-connected issues relating to the incidence of common law fiduciary duties in relationships of employment: (1) whether employment generally ought to be recognised as a class of ‘fiduciary relationship’; (2) whether all employees owe fiduciary duties to their employers; and (3) the basis on and circumstances in which employees are bound by such duties. It argues that there is little purpose in approaching the analysis of the existence of fiduciary accountability in employment on a generalised class basis; that such accountability is in all cases fact-based and dependent upon the circumstances of the case; that employment is not an inherently fiduciary relationship; that not all employees owe fiduciary duties to their employers; and that they are only bound by such duties where there is justified reliance on the part of the employer on the undivided loyalty of that employee. It then considers some of the factors emphasised by the courts as relevant for the purposes of determining whether fiduciary duties attach to an employee.

Employers’ Responses to Alcohol Addiction in South Africa: The Role of the Legislative Framework

by | May 25, 2023 | ILJ, ILJ V43 I1

Employers’ Responses to Alcohol Addiction in South Africa: The Role of the Legislative Framework

Author Betina Fleming

ISSN: 2413-9874
Affiliations: Attorney; LLB, LLM, University of the Witwatersrand
Source: Industrial Law Journal, Volume 43 Issue 1, 2022, p. 17 – 39

Abstract

Alcohol addiction in South Africa is a growing concern affecting many individuals, both professionally and personally. The impact of substance abuse on the workplace is immense and as such there is a need for employers to understand their roles, rights, and obligations in dealing with employees suffering from alcohol addiction. This article considers the definition of substance abuse, how it manifests itself in the workplace, and how employers can establish whether an employee is alcohol dependent. The article addresses the differences between misconduct in respect of social drinkers and incapacity in respect of employees suffering from alcohol addiction. It discusses the views of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and provides an overview of the South African legislative framework under the Labour Relations Act, the Employment Equity Act, and the Prevention of and Treatment for Substance Abuse Act. The article goes on to identify the gaps between the ILO’s recommendations and South African law and suggests mechanisms to close these gaps. If South Africa is to take steps to guard against alcohol abuse and protect the rights of employees, the introduction of a framework to assist employers in managing alcohol addiction is paramount. Ensuring synergy between the ILO recommendations and South African legislation is the first step.

Football Lores: The Playing Field of the Dispute Resolution Chamber of the National Soccer League

by | May 25, 2023 | ILJ, ILJ V43 I1

Football Lores: The Playing Field of the Dispute Resolution Chamber of the National Soccer League

Author Saleem Seedat

ISSN: 2413-9874
Affiliations: Part-time lecturer, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Past chairperson of the Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC) of the National Soccer League (NSL) with its seat in Johannesburg
Source: Industrial Law Journal, Volume 43 Issue 1, 2022, p. 40 – 62

Abstract

This article outlines the history of the game of football and examines the determined effort in recent times by both FIFA and the national football associations to regulate football not only through rules but by establishing dispute resolution mechanisms. In South Africa, the professional footballing authority established an independent forum, the Dispute Resolution Chamber, to consider all disputes in the football environment. In complying with its mandate as the arbiter of footballing disputes, the chamber developed jurisprudence on issues that are endemic to football. While it reiterated the rights of players, it did not shirk its responsibility to the clubs by finding against those players who were errant. The article examines the challenges to its authority and the key issues with which it was faced in attempting to achieve its goal of establishing a body of consistent, reasonable, and just jurisprudence.