Over the past ±5 years we have been keeping you in the loop with the legislative developments. Johnny, as a representative of business has been involved in the process at NEDLAC for the past ±5 years and is therefore well placed to guide you through the implementation of this legislation.
In our continued endeavor to keep you updated, we would like to summarise the recent developments and again clarify some misconceptions:
The National Assembly approved the Labour Relations Amendment Bill this week, as expected. The ANC voted in favour, and the opposition parties voted against.
It is critical for you to understand that the process is still not finalised. This proposed legislation still has to go to the National Council of Provinces. At this stage, the National Assembly has passed them through their stage of the process and the Bills are not yet law. A copy of the Bill that was approved by the National Assembly is available here.
Click here for a detailed explanation of the legislative process.
The Bills will now go to the NCOP for approval. It is uncertain whether the NCOP intends holding public hearings on the LRA and BCEA amendments, but we will only be able to confirm this when the NCOP meets to decide the way forward for the Bills. This should happen in the next week or two. The NCOP is not obliged to hold hearings on Bills not affecting the provinces, so this will be a special case. The hearings, if confirmed, will probably take place within the next 4-6 weeks.
We believe, under the abovementioned circumstances, that we will have better certainty as to the finalisation of the Bills at the time of our Annual Labour Law Updates which are scheduled to be held nationally. We anticipate a full house so recommend that you book your seat now by clicking here.