Mediator Labour

Mediator Labour Labour Relations Consultants

🎉 Celebrating 20 Years of Success! 🎉On August 3rd, we marked a special milestone – 20 incredible years of growth, innova...
16/08/2024

🎉 Celebrating 20 Years of Success! 🎉

On August 3rd, we marked a special milestone – 20 incredible years of growth, innovation, and success! 🌟

Over the past two decades, we’ve journeyed together through challenges and triumphs, always with a focus on delivering excellence and creating value for our clients, partners, and community.

We couldn’t have achieved this without the dedication of our talented team, the trust of our valued customers, and the unwavering support of our partners. To all of you, we extend our deepest gratitude. 🙏

Here’s to the memories we’ve made and the future we’re building together. The best is yet to come!

Thank you for being a part of our journey. Let’s continue to innovate, inspire, and achieve great things together! 🚀

Position available Immediately in Hartbeespoort!
09/01/2024

Position available Immediately in Hartbeespoort!

11/12/2023

Announcement!

Position available in the LP Gas industry.
Location: Hartbeespoort, North-West, South Africa.

Please send all CV's to [email protected]

Know the difference, Misconduct vs. Poor Performance:In our publication of the previous week, we discussed goals within ...
24/05/2023

Know the difference, Misconduct vs. Poor Performance:

In our publication of the previous week, we discussed goals within the workplace to enable the management of performance, along with methods and criterions associated therewith. In this publication we will be elaborating on what should be considered if an employee continuously fails to meet these required standards that you have set and communicated with these goals / targets.

Your first step as an Employer would be to consider if such an Employee is “underperforming” or if the Employee has transgressed any workplace rule or acted negligently.

Poor performance defined would be an Employee who fails to meet the required standard of work within the workplace.

Simple questions you can ask yourself to determine whether you are faced with a poor performer or acts of negligence / misconduct:

-Is the Employee displaying an inability to meet the expectations and standards in their roles?

-Is the Employee failing to deliver work within the required timeframes, if so why?
-Is the Employee making repetitive errors in his/her duties?

After asking yourself some of these questions it should then become clear if the employee’s actions form part of his/her behaviour or his/her ability to do their job. Should you consider these actions to be somewhat deliberate and rather behaviour related, the onus rests upon the Employer to take action as a matter of misconduct / negligence.

Misconduct is defined as behaviour that can be considered unacceptable and breaks the rules, policies and procedures of the employer. There are obviously other offences at common law level such as theft which are obviously considered to be misconduct.

Herewith a few examples of misconduct:

Competing with the employer in the same line of business – depending on the contractual obligations
Displaying disrespectful behaviour towards the employer / fellow employees
Making derogatory statements towards others
Being under the influence whilst being on duty
Taking company property without authorisation and/or permission

Should you find after objectively looking at the answers to your questions that the Employee’s actions are to be considered as “Poor Performance” there are a few steps that needs to be taken to improve the Employee’s performance and to assess problems relating thereto.

In the process of consulting the employee about his/her short comings it is important to bring the expected standard / shortcoming to the attention of the employee and in some instances you may be required to assist the employee to meet the Employers requirements. It is of utmost importance that these consultations are recorded in writing.

Some ways of attempting to achieve a solution for the Employee’s poor performance would be to create a Performance Improvement plan ( read our previous publication for assistance/ideas ), if this does not succeed the employees services may be terminated after following formal procedures.

In our publication for next week, we will be discussing the seriousness related to misconduct and how to deal with such.

Be sure to “check in” next week.

Goals within the workplace: Goal setting when being balanced with the interest of the company and the employee, can easi...
18/05/2023

Goals within the workplace:

Goal setting when being balanced with the interest of the company and the employee, can easily be seen as a recipe for success.

When being employed in the position where it is expected of you to lead and manage other employees and/or when starting a new business, one of the key things you should consider is the goals and/or visions you intend to achieve.

Something as simple as communicating goals with your employees would improve the overall mindset within the workplace and would encourage employees to focus on the already communicated tasks to achieve these goals.

When visualising goals and the outcomes that one wants to achieve it is important to consider the following factors:

-Time management
-Assigning tasks and/or responsibilities
-Communication
-Support
-Should the overall goal be divided into smaller goals?
-What you will be able to control and plan for the rest
-Think of the bigger picture, go beyond immediate tasks.
-Scheduling of check-in’s
-Track everyone’s accomplishments.

When goals are being communicated within the workplace, it could give employee’s a sense of importance and motivate a sense of goal-drivenness.

Ultimately, it can be seen as a big leap forward when having motivated staff members.

When employees fail to achieve these goals and continuously fall short of what is expected of them, it becomes your responsibility as senior to consider if this employee either has a “poor performance” issue or if this forms part of misconduct.

Next week we will be explaining more about when an employee has an issue of either poor performance or has committed a form of misconduct.

Be sure to “check-in” next week to read more on the topic of poor performance/misconduct.

Legal Representation in Disciplinary Hearings-Employers are often faced with employees who when being faced with a disci...
11/05/2023

Legal Representation in Disciplinary Hearings-

Employers are often faced with employees who when being faced with a disciplinary hearing requests legal representation. Employees often feel that having legal representation will ensure fairness and improve their chances of being found “not guilty” and/or maintaining their employment. The common law principle applies that a person does not have an automatic right to legal representation seeing as it doesn’t form part as a tribunal of the court of law. It is however important to note that legal representation may be allowed by the discretion of the chairperson after taking into consideration certain factors.

Factors to be considered by the chairperson includes the complexity of the charges, the nature of the charges, any prejudice that may be suffered by the employer when permitting legal representation, prejudice that may be suffered by the accused when being refused legal representation and the consequences and potential seriousness of and adverse finding.

As there is no law forcing employers to permit such representation it would be beneficial for employers to enforce a rule along with their disciplinary code where it is indicated that legal representation will not be permitted. Disciplinary Hearing are internal matters and internal representation does form part as an automatic right.

Employers during such a request can either oppose or permit legal representation, thereafter the chairperson will be deciding if such request can be granted or not.

Should you request any further information, please feel free to contact our offices.
Tel: 012 333 2548/ E-mail: [email protected]

Today we are sharing with you 4 happy faces after yet another training session. These pupils have undergone training spe...
12/04/2023

Today we are sharing with you 4 happy faces after yet another training session. These pupils have undergone training spesifically designed for their managerial positions and in the Motor Industry.

We trust that these employees now have a better understanding of Idustrial Relations and will now be able to apply discipline with confidence.

Contact us to book your training today:
Email- [email protected]
Tel- 012 333 2548

What’s New Wednesday:As an Employer in South Africa, you are faced with many challenges, a prime example being the load ...
05/04/2023

What’s New Wednesday:

As an Employer in South Africa, you are faced with many challenges, a prime example being the load shedding that has been with us at varying stages for a very long time. Even though some companies have adapted to this inconvenience and have somewhat mastered the art scheduling of tasks/events/meetings etc. to be held at the best available times, it seems that we haven’t reached the tip of the iceberg and simple “planning” won’t be as enough anymore. This is clear from many production clients who have had to stop manufacturing some product lines and only focus on key products that can be manufactured while the power is on.

We are faced with an electrical crisis with no end in sight. South Africans are, despite the numerous reassurances, concerned that those of us who fearmonger the public may be correct and this has exacerbated the situation. As it is common cause that only a small group of companies can continue to operate successfully in these circumstances, it is imperative for companies to be pro-active in this respect.

Why do you need to be prepared?
The current situation results in employees reporting for duty, not being able to work a full work day as a result of the power outage and the employer still needs to pay the employees their normal salaries, there is however an exception to this rule.

We recommend that you implement an agreement between the parties regulating the way of work, one can consider a system of reduced working hours (short-time) or unpaid leave, otherwise considering retrenchment, temporary layoffs, and suspensions.

Facing the current situation can be daunting and it is advisable to obtain sound advice in respect of the above.

Let’s discuss the best possible solutions and what would be best suitable for your business.

Contact us on:
Email- [email protected]
Tel- 012 333 2548

Post the abolishment of the previous Industrial Relations Act the Labour Relations Act was promulgated, the Act essentia...
29/03/2023

Post the abolishment of the previous Industrial Relations Act the Labour Relations Act was promulgated, the Act essentially prescribes and regulates the relationship between employer and employee.
Schedule 8 to the Act more specifically item 3 speaks to measures short of dismissal, gone are the days where employers can simply inform an employee that his services are no longer needed even for the habitual late comer.
Less serious offences committed by employees should be addressed correctively in other words the employee should receive a written / final written warning in a progressive fashion. Most employers simply have a verbal discussion with the employee indicating that that employee transgressed a certain rule and then leaves the matter at that, when the employees behavior fails to improve more verbal scolding’s are meted but never reduced to writing making the reprimands very difficult to proof, especially when the employees misbehavior has reached a stage of intolerability.
The other benefit of issuing warnings verbal or otherwise is to prove the existence of a certain rule, no employee can ever allege that he/she was not aware of the workplace rule or practice in the event where they have previously been warned and such warning was reduced to writing.
More serious transgressions such as theft, fraud, assault and sexual harassment are not subject to the principle of progressive discipline and will in most instances be referred to a formal hearing in which event the erring employee may be dismissed.
It is important to ensure that your employees are aware of the specific workplace rules and regulations and the prescribed outcome if the employee breaches the rule or practice. The organizations rules and regulations should normally be contained in the employers code of conduct which serves as a guideline when dealing with disciplinary infractions.

Need assistance achieving and/or creating the standard of discipline expected in your workplace, contact us on:
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 012 333 2548

Temporary Employment Contracts in comparison to Probation based Employment contracts:When offering an individual employm...
22/03/2023

Temporary Employment Contracts in comparison to Probation based Employment contracts:

When offering an individual employment, it is essential to determine the conditions of the employment prior to commencing with the employment relationship.

We have noted that it has over the years become a common practise by employers to attempt to “cheat the system” by not providing an employee with the correct contract from inception in order to avoid its obligations in terms of probation.

However, a mistake as common as supplying an individual with the incorrect type of employment contract can have serious consequences.

As employer it is important to identify the reason for the employment ie. For a specific project / reason (time based = Fixed term) or permanent employment (open-ended with the provision of a probatory period. It is never a good idea to use a fixed term employment contract to first see if the employee fits into the organisation.

It should not be missed that there are many more legislative prescripts in respect contracts and some can be sector specific, based on the reason for the vacancy and many more.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for more specialised information and/or advise to ensure that you avoid any unnecessary mistakes and/or problems in future.

Our contact details:
E-mail- [email protected]
Tel- 012 333 2548

Address

Pretoria
0186

Opening Hours

Monday 08:00 - 17:00
Tuesday 08:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 08:00 - 17:00
Thursday 08:00 - 17:00
Friday 08:00 - 17:00

Telephone

+27123332548

Website

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