Lra, which would force labour brokers to register with the. Labour hire, the practice of hiring out employees to clients by a labour broker, has been a part of namibias history since the early 1900s in the form of the contract labour system. While employment agencies and labour brokers can profit from this business, they often pay a very high price for taking over the labour law risks involved. Pcm labour broking is a labour broking company, specialising in resource placements in mining, process, building, commercial, petrochemical, food, infrastructure and government industries. However, the market is gradually recovering and this is expected to help employment figures. Labour broking is a form of acquiring casual labour. National library of south africa, pretoria division. South african post office sapo strategy on use of labour. Deaf federation of south africa submission judith madi of the deaf federation of south africa said that their organisation had set up an employment placement office in 1997 for its members. The tes industry alone turns over more than r40 billion annually, contributing significantly to government revenue with tax and vat. Temporary employment services labour brokers in south. Pdf temporary employment services labour brokers in.
These employees were subjected to harsh working conditions, inhumane living conditions and influx control. Constitutional court ruling on labour brokers a victory. Labour departments dg welcomes constitutional court ruling on labour brokers. Ca14001, in which a united kingdombased company, weatherford uk ltd weatherford, with no ties in south africa sought the. Labour broking is a practice that occurs exclusively in south africa.
Employment services bill on labour brokers gets goahead article sapa 12 nov 20 the employment services bill, intended to regulate labour brokers, has been given the green light in the. The labour broker, the employee and the client, document, labour. The broker tes must comply with the act if it takes any action regulated by the act. Mar 01, 20 while employment agencies and labour brokers can profit from this business, they often pay a very high price for taking over the labour law risks involved. Cosatu, south africas largest trade union, has called for the abolishment of labour brokering because they are responsible for the casualisation of labour in south africa. This years labour legislation amendments have hammered down the lid on business flexibility. The labour court of south africa, johannesburg judgment reportable case no. A south african perspective 1 september 2001 there has been a considerable growth of temporary employment services, or labour brokers, as they are more colloquially known, in south africa over the past five years. There are many employment and recruitment agencies in durban and other major cities in south africa, but because the services they offer are different to those of labour brokers, the competition between the two is minimal. The business of hiring out employees to clients by labour brokers was used in namibia from early in the 20 th century. Known as contract labour, it was characterised by inhuman and unfair labour practices. Last week, s regular small business contributor irvine green also stated the case for why government needs to simplify the rules for entrepreneurs. New labour legislation puts brakes on labour brokers hr. The court battle was between numsa and assign services pty limited labour broker or temporary employment services tes.
Last week, s regular small business contributor irvine green also stated the case for why government needs to. Cosatu argues that labour brokers are responsible for the increasing casualisation of labour in south africa. Joining abn to discuss the role and liabilities of labour brokers in south africa is. Labour broking refers to the act of finding casual, short term employment for people looking for work. Registered trade unions description a list of all the registered trade unions in south africa with contact details and other information for oktober 2014 category representative organisations sub category trade unions document type information sheet filename registered trade unions. The majority judgment was penned by acting justice daniel dlodlo.
Labour brokers are different from recruitment agencies in that labour brokers handle almost all aspects of the workers employment including interviews. Registered trade unions in south africa for june 2014. In 2007 a labour brokering service edeaf, was set up which focussed on placing deaf people in employment positions. Labour brokers and producers who contract their services, are jointly liable for ensuring that the fair labour practices are complied with regardless of whether workers are employed directly by the producer or by the labour broker. Rules board for labour courts and rules for labour court 160. Statistics south africa, 2016 report 021102 2015 208 pp isbn 9780621449563 a complete set of stats sa publications is available at stats sa library and the following libraries. Apr 01, 2015 so clients of labour brokers, no 1, are now deemed to be employees, i would say, together with the labour brokers.
Becoming an employer in south africa is fraught with legal dangers whether you are a tes or not. South africa labour brokers to challenge labour relations act amendments 20th april 2015 south african labour brokers, the local terms for temporary staffing firms, intend to go to court in the coming weeks to challenge the recently amended labour relations act, reports. Unfortunately, the new rule could be interpreted in two opposite ways. Ca14001, in which a united kingdombased company, weatherford uk ltd weatherford, with no ties in south. While different types of contingent work have increased their presence since the transition to democracy, this is not reflected by the constituency of south african trade unions. The best 10 labour brokers in port elizabeth 2020 africa. The labour broker, the employee and the client description a consideration of the rights of a labour brokers employee, the role of the client of the labour broker and the actual labour broker in light of a discussion through case law. Pdf the flourishing nature of labour brokerage in south africa.
With an unemployment rate of around 25%, south africas biggest challenge is the creation of jobs. Jul, 2017 employees hired by labour brokers will be entitled to benefits if they remain employed by a company for more than three months, the labour appeal court in johannesburg has ruled. We view this as the first step in ending the labour brokering system in south africa. Selected timebased social and international comparisons statistics south africa. South africa s labour brokers have come under intense flack amongst the countrys unions. Labour brokering is a form of outsourcing practiced in south africa and formerly practiced in namibia, where it was known as labour hire in which companies contract labour brokers to provide them with casual labour. Labour market dynamics in south africa, 2015 statistics south africa. Benefits of labour broking labour broking in durban. The industry supports labour brokers committing themselves to the principles contained in the standard. The flourishing nature of labour brokerage in south africa. Roleplayers in the south african labour fraternity over the past number of months. It was, at one point, practiced in namibia, but currently south africa is the only country in the world in which labour broking is practiced. Our experience with labour brokers is that they are extremely abusive and expose workers to low wages and. Labour broking is similar to what recruitment agencies and temp agencies do, but they do it much quicker and make it much more convenient for the company which is looking for employees.
Companies use brokers to avoid labour laws, says judge. The issue affected sapos 7 500 casual employees, who recently went on strike because of a lack of pay parity between temporary and permanent staff, a lack of benefits for temporary staff, and substandard working conditions. Labour broking may also be defined as a form of subcontracting, where definite services are procured from an outside supplier i. Law and practice of private employment agency work in south africa.
The department of labour welcomes the judgment by the constitutional court in the matter between assign service pty. Ersa shall not be liable to any person for inaccurate information or opinions contained herein. So clients of labour brokers, no 1, are now deemed to be employees, i would say, together with the labour brokers. Pdf temporary employment services labour brokers in south. Labour brokers add no value to the south african economy tes companies work to actively reduce unemployment not only with job placement, but also by increasing the longterm employability of workers. South africas export growth slowed sharply in 1998, but so did world trade, due to the asian crisis internationally comparable data. South africa is not the only, or first, country in southern africa to wrestle with this problem. A consideration of the rights of a labour brokers employee, the role of the client.
In the case of lad brokers pty ltd v mandla 2002 6 sa 43 lac, the court held that the worker was the employee of the labour broker but the labour broker temporary employment service and the client are jointly and severally liable in case of any contravention committed by the labour broker, in respect of. The dabate on labour brokers african journals online. There are labour brokers in durban, johannesburg, cape town and many other cities in south africa. Abstract this thesis examines the challenges of contingent work encountered by trade unions in postapartheid south africa. Labour broking in south africa labour brokers durban. An additional factor to be borne in mind is that the provisions governing tes do not apply to independent contractors, and in a recent labour appeal court decision, lad brokers pty limited v robert mandla, unreported case no. Jul 16, 2017 this is subject to a number of exceptions, but likely covers a majority of labour broker staff, generally estimated to total between 600 000 and 1 million people in south africa. Section 3 presents the theoretical framework through which we interpret the empirical evidence on south africa.
The uncertainty of employment enables labour brokers to appropriate rent and to profit from worker effort in the long run. List of best labour brokers in port elizabeth of 2020. Proceedings of labour court to be carried on in open court 161. Registered trade unions pdf labour law south africa. Currently about 30% of the south african workforce is casualised. The new labour legislation that came into effect in 1996 severely hamstrung employers in the way they dealt with their employees. Role and liabilities of labour brokers in south africa youtube. Large companies are being deterred from implementing plans that will inevitably create jobs, as a result of south africas labour laws. The term labour broker is used in south africa to refer to what are more. Find labour brokers in port elizabeth and get directions and maps for local businesses in africa. Category employment conditions sub category employment agreements document type articles filename. The best 10 labour brokers 2020 africa african advice. Allafrica is a voice of, by and about africa aggregating, producing and distributing 900 news and information items daily from over 140 african news organizations and our own reporters to an. Safety officer, resource officer, electrical artisan and more on.
A list of all the registered trade unions in south africa with contact details and other information for oktober 2014 category representative organisations sub category trade unions document type information sheet filename registered trade unions. Private bag x117, pretoria, 0001 215 schoeman street, pretoria, 0002 alphabetical list of registered trade unions. The global recession of 2008 hit the local labour market hard, and more than a million jobs were lost by 2010. According to the 2011 census, 759 127 households with an aggregate population of 2 732 605 people 5. Pdf south africa currently allows labour broking although this area of commerce is problematic. Thus the negative shock to output was relatively mild, certainly in terms of the international experience surrounding the subprime crisis. South african economy, relevant to the labor market. Once also practiced in namibia, south africa is currently the only country that uses labour broking. Companies use brokers to avoid labour laws, says judge the. South africas labour brokers have come under intense flack amongst the countrys unions. A case study was done in south africa to determine if the theory fits the sample. Aug 22, 2012 cosatu, south africas largest trade union, has called for the abolishment of labour brokering because they are responsible for the casualisation of labour in south africa.
The congress of south african trade unions cosatu, south africa s largest trade union federation, has called for the abolition of labour brokering in south africa. By contrast, the reaction in the labor market was stronger by several close to four orders. In 2002, labour legislation was again drastically amended to constrain employer rights even further. Farm workers living and working conditions in south africa. Employees hired by labour brokers will be entitled to benefits if they remain employed by a company for more than three months, the. Aug 01, 2012 many companies in south africa use labour brokers to circumvent labour laws, says labour appeal court judge president dunstan mlambo. Employment services bill on labour brokers gets goahead article sapa 12 nov 20 the employment services bill, intended to regulate labour brokers, has. Casual workers account for about 30% of south africas labourforce and they are remunerated at a lower rate than that of permanent employees. Labour broking also known as temporary employment servicestes is a practice in south africa in which companies the end users employ a casual workforce through labour brokers, which are agencies that provide. Market dynamics in south africa lmdsa data sets for 201120. Many companies in south africa use labour brokers to circumvent labour laws, says labour appeal court judge president dunstan mlambo. Registered trade unions in south africa labour guide.
In 199597, however, south africas annual export growth rate jumped to nearly 9 per cent, slightly exceeding the world average. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the funder, ersa or the authors affiliated institutions. Africa personnel services, ilo convention 181 of 1997, labour broker, labour hire, right to choose trade, occupation or profession freely, temporary employment service abstract south africa currently allows labour broking although this area of commerce is problematic. There is the same issue at the university of south africa unisa, where around 2 000 workers were. The labour broker, the employee and the client pdf.
May 09, 2014 in the case of lad brokers pty ltd v mandla 2002 6 sa 43 lac, the court held that the worker was the employee of the labour broker but the labour broker temporary employment service and the client are jointly and severally liable in case of any contravention committed by the labour broker, in respect of. Role and liabilities of labour brokers in south africa. This form of employment was characterized by inhumanity and unfair labour practices. There is the same issue at the university of south africa unisa, where around 2 000 workers were dismissed by temporary employment services. Huge court victory for workers hired by labour brokers.
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