I have had a number of queries recently about employees that are seemingly incompatible with their colleagues, their work environment or management. Dealing with these employees can be tricky and employers need to be very careful when considering dismissal for incompatibility.
A subject related to absenteeism, which was dealt with in the last Labour Compass newsletter, is the subject of “Desertion”. When does an employee desert or abscond from employment? What does it mean when an employee absconds? What must you do when an employee deserts or absconds or is absent from work for an extended period of time without contacting you?
Thank you for the positive feedback received on the last Newsletter. In this issue I have included an extract from Labour Bulletin, an FSP email bulletin. Absenteeism is a plague in the Western Cape and costs the country billions of Rands annually.
What are you doing to reduce absenteeism? Are you doing everything you possibly can to address the problem? If not, then the example below should give you an indication of the actual cost of absenteeism to your business.
It has been a while since the last issue of Labour Compass. Please look out for more regular issues in the future. I recently came across this well written article by Barney Jordaan, a recognised expert in the field of labour law. For your own good, read this article thoroughly. Call me if you have any questions arising out of the article.
WRITTEN WARNINGS
In Labour Compass no 4 I dealt with the issue of Dismissal and aspects of what makes a dismissal a fair dismissal. One of the legs of a fair dismissal is procedural fairness. Written warnings are generally considered to form part of the procedural aspect of a dismissal. In this edition I will focus on some important aspects of written warnings.
FAIR DISMISSAL
The Labour Relations Act defines dismissal as follows:
COIDA – Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act
COIDA is the acronym for the name of the legislation that governs injuries and diseases that arise in the employment context. The old legislation was known as the Workmen’s Compensation Act (WCA).