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Article 51/2024

LabourEdge

The scenario is as follows: only employees working at a bakery and not employees working at a mill were party to the disputes when referred to conciliation.  At arbitration, the union wanted to join the employees working at the mill.

Is such joinder permissible?

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  • The constitutional court, in National Union of Metalworkers of SA v Intervalve (Pty) Ltd and Others (2015) 36 ILJ 363 (CC), held that a matter has to be conciliated before the labour court has jurisdiction to arbitrate it.
  • The labour court, in Premier FMCG (Pty) Ltd t/a Blue Ribbon Bakery v FAWU, held that the above rule is equally applicable to arbitration proceedings – with reference to the aforesaid factual matrix, the labour court held that the employees working at the mill could not be joined at the arbitration stage, seeing that they were not party to the dispute processed through conciliation.
September 7, 2026

The previous article dealt with the distinction between misconduct constituting desertion and misconduct constituting abscondment – see, further, in this regard, Okhahlamba Local Municipality v Mabuya (2021) 32 SALLR 12 (LC).

In this article, what we attempt to do is provide some clarity as to a very different misconduct, namely, the misconduct of deeming desertion.

August 31, 2026

What is the difference between desertion and abscondment?

August 17, 2026

We think that everyone understands that an employer is vicariously liable for the wrong committed (an act or omission) by its employee during the course/scope/sphere of employment/engagement in any activity reasonably incidental to it.

But, what is the extent of an employer’s vicarious liability where the employee commits a wrong on his or her own volition?