In terms of s64(1)(c) of the LRA, at least 48 hours’ notice of the commencement of the lockout has to be given, in writing, to the trade union that is a party to the dispute or, if there is no such trade union, the employees, unless the dispute relates to a collective agreement to be concluded in a council, in which case notice must be given to that council. What is the latest viewpoint of the labour court as to the requirements of a lockout notice, formulated in the National Association of SA Workers obo Members v Kings Hire CC (2019) 30 SALLR 55 (LC)?
In Kings Hire, the labour court adopted the following approach to such issue:
- as to the requirements of the notice itself, the only express requirement in s64(1)(c) itself is 48 hours’ prior notice to the trade and/or the employees concerned;
- in SA Transport and Allied Workers Union and Others v Moloto NO and Another (2012) 33 ILJ 2549 (CC), at paragraph [86], it was held that the only certainty required to be reflected in a strike notice is when the strike will start; and
- in the labour court’s view, this equally applied to a lockout notice. There is, however, the proviso that if there is a trade union, the lock out notice only has to be given to the trade union and not to the employees.
