REJECT THE DRAFT CODE ON GOOD PRACTICE ON DISMISSAL!
RESIST THE ATTACKS ON WORKERS’ RIGHTS!
The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) vehemently rejects the latest proposed amendments to labour laws and the Draft Code of Good Practice on Dismissal. These changes are a direct assault on the hard-won rights of workers, and we call on all workers, unions, and progressive formations to unite in resistance.
The proposed amendments to labour laws are not merely neutral, technical legal changes aimed at smoothing relations between the workers and the bosses on the shopfloor. Rather, the changes are underpinned by a political economy whose aim is to tilt the balance power relations on the shopfloor in favor of the bosses.
Spokespersons of the bosses in the mainstream media have always contended that the economy suffers from low growth and lack investment because of the stringent and rigid nature of South African labor market. Parties such as the Democratic Alliance have always been brazenly vocal in their for call for ‘labour law reforms to encourage investment’ – a call which culminated in the party’s march on COSATU house to decry the national minimum wage laws.
The supposed difficulty employers encounter in hiring and firing workers informs the current round of attacks on worker protections. That is, the proposed amendments have as their aim to remedy this perceived problem by the bosses.
SAFTU is unequivocal that these amendments represent raw class warfare waged by the bosses against workers. The proposed changes represent a thinly veiled attempt to chip away at the labour protections won through heroic struggles and huge sacrifices by the working class.
As early as late October 2024, SAFTU raised alarm to warn workers about the impending changes to the labour laws and the implications thereof, after the NEDLAC process was concluded despite SAFTU’s protestations that the process be re-started to allow for more open and fair deliberations.
SAFTU will commemorate workers day on the 1st of May by convening workers parliaments in numerous provinces in which workers will extensively discuss the proposed amendments to the labour laws and their implications for the workers. It is in those discussions that a clear fighting strategy will be formulated and the means for its implementation concretized. In other parts of the provinces, SAFTU will protest through demonstrations at the Department of Labour and other departments. The federation won’t be listening to long, boring speeches.
SAFTU’s position is consistent with the Declaration of the NEDLAC Annual Labour School 20 – 22 January 2024 in which the four federations party to NEDLAC declared the following:
“The labour school further affirmed our commitment to defending the hard-won gains made by workers and ensuring that they are implemented and not rolled back. We resolved to take joint action to defend our progressive labour laws and reject any attempts to undermine them including the current attacks on collective bargaining and attempts by employers to not adhere to collective agreements and labour law.”
Below are some of the proposed amendments and the dangers they pose for the hard-won gains of workers:
Key Dangers in the New Draft Code
1. Small Businesses Can Fire Without a Hearing
The new Draft Code removes the obligation for small employers to conduct formal disciplinary hearings. This opens the door to arbitrary dismissals without investigations, due process, or fairness. Even worse, large employers may exploit this loophole by falsely claiming “small business” status.
2. No Formal Hearings for Misconduct
Disciplinary processes are replaced with informal “dialogues” or written responses, stripping workers of representation, transparency, and the right to a fair hearing. This undermines basic principles of procedural fairness.
3. Probation = Less Protection
Employers will no longer be required to:
• Properly assess employee performance during probation,
• Justify extensions of probation, or
• Offer support, representation, or alternatives to dismissal.
Workers on probation become disposable, with zero safeguards.
4. Expanded Powers for Bosses: Incapacity & Incompatibility
The Draft Code introduces “incompatibility” as a valid reason for dismissal. Workers can now be fired simply for not “fitting in” with the company culture—an undefined and highly subjective standard that invites discrimination and abuse.
The code also dilutes employer obligations in cases of ill-health or injury. Employers are no longer required to:
• Explore accommodations,
• Offer alternative duties, or
• Assist workers in returning to work before dismissing them.
This is a step back to pre-1994 employer despotism.
5. Retrenched Workers: Re-employment Rights Weakened
The previous Code compelled employers to rehire retrenched workers if they were qualified. The Draft Code weakens this, giving employers the discretion to only consider re-employment—and only if workers meet heightened criteria of both qualifications and skills. This is a betrayal of job security and the right to work.
6. Unprotected Strikes: Progressive Language, Regressive Practice
While the Draft Code appears to introduce progressive criteria in assessing unprotected strikes—such as considering the conduct of employers and workers, and the legitimacy of demands—these are undermined by procedural regressions:
- Employers can demand collective representations instead of individual hearings, paving the way for mass dismissals without fair procedures.
- This guts the right to strike and collective action by making it easier to fire large groups of workers en masse.
7. Attack on Protest Rights: Amendment to Section 77
The proposed amendments to Section 77 of the Labour Relations Act impose an arbitrary 24-month expiry on certificates of deadlock issued by NEDLAC. This is a direct attack on the democratic right of workers to engage in protected protest action on socio-economic issues.
Currently, once a deadlock is declared, workers can engage in protest at any time. The new amendment forces unions to use that certificate within two years or reapply—a deliberate bureaucratic hurdle aimed at frustrating workers’ constitutional rights to protest.
In pointing out the above areas, we do not undermine the gains workers have registered through the process of negotiations. These gains include:
Employers must take more steps before dismissing workers who are on an unprotected strike. If workers go on an unprotected strike the employer should:
- Not only contact a trade union official but also give the trade union a chance to engage with the striking workers.
- If there is no trade union, the employer should engage with the leaders or representatives of the striking workers.
- The employers should consider any representations made by the union official or the worker representatives.
- The legitimacy of workers’ demands
- The duration and timing of the strike
More protection for workers who are on an unprotected strike – these workers can still be dismissed but the fairness of the dismissal will depend on:
- Whether the employer’s conduct was unlawful, unfair or unreasonable
- The conduct of parties
- The legitimacy of workers’ demands
- The duration and timing of the strike
- The harm caused by the strike
However, these are not sufficient to outweigh the deeply regressive core of the Draft Code and accompanying amendments.
These amendments signal a dangerous drift toward a labour regime that serves bosses and exploits workers. They represent a fundamental attack on job security, workplace justice, and the constitutional right to protest.
SAFTU calls on all working-class formations, community organizations, and progressive allies to join us in rejecting these amendments in their entirety.
SAFTU Calls for Action
We call on all workers, trade unions, social movements, student groups, and community organisations to join us in:
Rejecting the Draft Code of Good Practice on Dismissal
Opposing the anti-worker amendments to the LRA, including changes to Section 77
Defending the right to strike, to organise, and to job security
These proposals must be withdrawn in full.
Let us unite in the streets, in workplaces, and in communities. Let us fight like we did before 1994, to defend every inch of worker dignity, democracy, and justice.
A Statement was issued on behalf of SAFTU by General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi.
For more details, contact the National Spokesperson at:
Newton Masuku
066 168 2157
Newtonm@saftu.org.za
