by Aleshia van der Ploeg, Founder of VDP Legal Consulting, South Africa
Is your business finally growing? Are you hiring more and more employees in order to assist you? One of the greatest challenges facing entrepreneurs these days is employment issues!
Although our labour laws have provided improved protection and job security to the most vulnerable workers, there is evidence suggesting better labour laws significantly reduce the number of jobs available.
To avoid ending up on the wrong side of the law, here are a few tips:
Enter into employment contracts
In terms of Section 29 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, every employer is required to provide an employee with a written contract of employment not later that the first day of commencement of employment.
The contract of employment specifies the terms and conditions that will apply between the company and the employee.
An employment contract can be a useful tool to regulate your relationship and to cover various issues (such as study leave) which is not dealt with in our labour laws.
Have policies and procedures in place
Policies and procedures are vital to assist the employer to regulate the conduct of employees and create consistency in application of its rules.
Especially in this day and age, employers need policies and procedures to deal with issues such as social media; electronic communications; corruption and kickbacks; sexual harassment etc.
Other policies and procedures to consider are Disciplinary code & procedures; Promotion and transfer policy; Training, development and study policy; Health and Safety policy; Substance abuse policy; Telephone and cell phone policy; Code of conduct & ethics policy; Policy relating to the access to and use of the computer system, including the internet and e-mail system; Performance policy; Smoking policy; Employment equity policy; HIV policy; Security and search policy.
Follow the statutory and regulatory requirements
It is important to remember that there are certain statutory obligations on employers in respect of employees ie:
Employees earning over a certain amount must pay PAYE – a tax required to be deducted by an employer from an employee's remuneration.
According to the Unemployment Insurance Act and the Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act, all employees working more than 24 hours per month must be registered with the UIF. The employer is liable for the registration of the employees.
According to the Compensation for Occupational Injuries & Diseases Act 130/1993 amended in 1997, the employer is responsible for registering employees with the Compensation Fund.
For further information or assistance email aleshia@vdplegal.co.za
Aleshia van Der Ploeg LLB (RAU) was admitted as an Attorney of the High Court in South Africa in 2006. She is a member of the Law Society of the Northern provinces. She has 10 years post-qualification experience in corporate, commercial, labour and general law. She practised as an attorney and served as a Director before forming her own consulting firm. www.vdplegal.co.za | Email aleshia@vdplegal.co.za
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