As most of you will already know, in South Africa, workers’ rights are protected by the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA). This act essentially outlines all employee rights and inm section 16 it specifically outlines how employees should be compensated for working on...
Your Company Does Not Care About YOU – And That’s OK
Ever feel like your job takes up more of your life than it should? You put in extra hours, skip personal plans, and push yourself to the limit, yet, when all is said and done, it feels like no one really cares. The hard...
Understanding Your Rest Period Rights: Section 15 of the BCEA
If you are working in South Africa, you have probably wondered, “How much rest time am I supposed to get between work shifts or at the end of the week?” or “Can my boss make me work seven days straight?” These are all really...
How To Ask For a Raise
Asking for a raise can be nerve-wracking, but it's an important step in your career growth. When you're looking to increase your salary, it's important to approach the conversation professionally and strategically. In this blog, we'll cover everything you need to know about how to...
Should South Africans Consider Quiet Quitting?
Quiet Quitting is a new trend sweeping across social media at the moment. A quick search for the hashtag #QuietQuitting will turn up numerous posts, all with different views on this controversial movement. And quiet quitting here in South Africa is no different. But what...
Can your employer force you to take the COVID-19 vaccine?
Well, the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines have arrived in South Africa, and although many high “risk individuals” are elated by their arrival, there is still a large portion of the country that are rather skeptical. The reasoning behind this skepticism varies from person...
Disciplinary measures available for employers
If an employee fails to follow the rules/regulations or performance standards of the company, what are the disciplinary measures available for employers? This is a question I recently received from a manager of a small company. And after answering him directly via E-Mail I thought...
17 Basic Employee Rights
The BCEA (Basic Conditions of Employment Act) makes a few basic employee rights exceptionally clear. It deals with things like hours of work, leave, payment of remuneration, termination of employment, and methods of enforcement. Every employee should know their rights, and in fact, your...
How to identify a bad boss!
Working for a bad boss or manager might make you question your career choices. But even worse then that, an awful boss can have an impact on your home life and mental or emotional well-being. There is nothing worse than waking up in the...
Salary Non-Payment [What are your options?]
What do you do if your employer refuses to pay you your salary for work done? Fortunately, this is not a very common problem because most employers are decent and pay their staff correctly. Usually, the problem over non-payment arises when a staff member...
Understanding Workplace Dismissals in South Africa
Getting dismissed is often referred to as “getting fired!” And although the world of Hollywood would have you believe that firing a worker is as simple as yelling the words “YOUR FIRED!” from your corner office. The reality in South Africa is actually quite...
Sick Leave in South Africa | What you need to know
Many workers do not entirely understand the law surrounding sick leave and the individual rights of both the employer and employee. Fortunately, as with most employee/employer-related questions we can find most of the answers in the basic conditions of employment act or the labour...
10 Tips for starting a new job
It does not really make a difference how long you have been a member of the workforce, starting a new job is going to cause a mixture of stress and excitement in anyone. It is normal to feel nervous and completely out of your...
13 Signs that it is time to quit your job.
Thinking about resigning from work? Let's face it, everyone has a bad day at work from time to time, often leaving the office in a huff, promising to hand in their resignation the very next day. Yes, we have all been there. So how...
How much notice should you give when resigning?
How much notice should you give when resigning? For some reason this is still a commonly asked question by employees. Fortunately, we don’t need to guess, because the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997 (BCEA) has already answered this question for us...