Chapter 4

Question 1

What does the BCEA offer?

Answer 1

The BCEA seeks to offer protection to employees who have little or no bargaining power to balance the superior economic power of their employers.

Question 2

What BCEA stand for?

Answer 2

Basic Conditions of Employment Act

Question 3

Who does the BCEA not cover?

Answer 3

SSA(State Security Agency) and unpaid volunteers(charitable purpose)

Question 4

What is NMWA?

Answer 4

National Minimum Wage Act

Question 5

What is the purpose of NMWA?

Answer 5

To improve the wages of the lowest paid workers and protecting workers from unreasonable low wages?

Question 6

Who is excluded from NMWA?

Answer 6

Members of the SA national defense force, national inteligence agencey anThe SA secret service.

Question 7

Where in the BCEA is the regulation of working hours in?

Answer 7

section 27 chapter 2

Question 8

Which Employees are excluded by sec.6?

Answer 8

Senior mangement,employees in sales who travel to customers and those that work less than 24r hours in a month.

Question 9

Which section in chapter 2 states the max Ordinary working hours?

Answer 9

section 9

Question 10

What are the max ordinary working hours?

Answer 10

45 hours in a week

Question 11

Section 9 of chapter 2 doesnt apply to which employees?

Answer 11

Doesnt apply to the employees who earn an excess of the statutory threshold in paragrapgh 4.3.2.

Question 12

According to NMWA what is the NMW per hour?

Answer 12

R 25,42

Question 13

Where do you find the information in the BCEA about overtime?

Answer 13

chapter 2, section 10

Question 14

Where in the BCEA do you find information on compressed working week?

Answer 14

chapter 2, section 11

Question 15

What is the compressed working week?

Answer 15

A written agreement between the employer and employee may allow the employee to work a maximum of 12 hours per day (including the meal interval) without receiving overtime pay. As long as they don’t working more than 45 ordinary hours.

Question 16

Where in the BCEA can you find information on averaging of hours of work?

Answer 16

Chapter 2 section 12

Question 17

What does the averaging hours of work state?

Answer 17

Ordinary hours of work and overtime may, in terms of a collective agreement, be averaged over a maximum period of four months, subject to an average of ordinary hours not exceeding 45 hours per week and an average of overtime not exceeding five hours per week.

Question 18

Where in the BCEA can you find info on meal intervals?

Answer 18

chapter 2, section 14

Question 19

What does section 14 on meal intervals state?

Answer 19

meal interval of at least one hour after five hours of continuous work and if they work less than 6 hours they can get a 30 min break or no break upon agreement.

Question 20

Where in the BCEA can we find info on rest periods?

Answer 20

chapter 2, section 15

Question 21

What does section 15 of rest periods state?

Answer 21

12 consecutive hours between ending and recommencing work and a weekly rest period of at least 36 consecutive hours, which must include Sunday.

Question 22

Where can you find information about working on sundays?

Answer 22

chapter 2 ,section 16

Question 23

Where can you find information on public holidays?

Answer 23

chapter 2 section 18

Question 24

Where can you find information on night work?

Answer 24

chapter 2 section 17

Question 25

What is 'night work'?

Answer 25

work done between 6pm and 6am the following morning and where transposrtation must be available for the employee to go home.

Question 26

What is ' night work on a regular basis'?

Answer 26

Work done between 11pm and 6 pm on at least 5 occasions p/m or 50 occasions p/a.

Question 27

Where can you find information on annual leave?

Answer 27

chapter 2,section 20 &21

Question 28

What entails annual leave?

Answer 28

* Leave with full pay. * A minimum of 21 consecutive days must be granted to p/a. * by agreement, one day for every 17 days of completed work or one hour for every 17 hours worked. * The leave entitlement must be extended by one day for every public holiday that falls within the leave period.

Question 29

Where is the information on maternity leave found?

Answer 29

chapter 2, section 3[25]

Question 30

What does maternity leave entail?

Answer 30

* 4 consecutive months * can start at 1 month before due date OR on an agreed date OR on a date necessitated by the employee’s health or that of her unborn child. * An employee may not work for six weeks after the birth of her child. * An employee who has a miscarriage during the third trimester or bears a stillborn child is entitled to maternity leave for six weeks.

Question 31

Where can you find information on sick leave?

Answer 31

chapter 2, section 3[22-24]

Question 32

What entails sick leave?

Answer 32

* full pay. * calculated over a 36-month leave cycle. * over the three-year period, on only allowed days they would work in six weeks. * provided the first six months of employment have been completed. * During the first six months of employment the employee is limited to one day’s paid sick leave for every 26 days worked.

Question 33

Where can you find information on parental leave?

Answer 33

chapter 2,section 3[25A]

Question 34

What does parental leave entail?

Answer 34

* 10 day per occasion. * upon the birth or adoption of a child. * notify a month before in writing. * unpaid but can claim parental benefits under the Unemployment Insurance Act.

Question 35

Where can you find information about adoption leave?

Answer 35

chapter 3, section3[25B]

Question 36

What does adoptive leave entail?

Answer 36

* child is ,2 years. * starts day adoption is granted. * (everything is the same as parental leave).

Question 37

Where can you find information on commissioning parental leave?

Answer 37

Chapter 2, section 3[25C]

Question 38

Where can you find information on family resbonsibility?

Answer 38

chapter 2 , section 27

Question 39

What entails family responsibility?

Answer 39

* 3 consecutive days p/a. * received with the death of a family member or a sick child or birth of a new child. * paid leave. * needs proof. *

Question 40

Where can you find information on Particulars of employment and remuneration?

Answer 40

chapter 4, section 28-35

Question 41

What entails Particulars of employment and remuneration?

Answer 41

* [29]- employesr must give conditions of employment, venue, remuneration,etc. * employer must keep employee records for 3 years, except for employers who have less that 5 employees. * BCEA must be displayed in different languages in a workplace.

Question 42

Where can you find information on variation of conditions of employment?

Answer 42

chapter 7, sections 49-50

Question 43

What does variation of conditions of employment entail?

Answer 43

it entails 2 other agreements being variation by agreement and variation by ministerial determination

Question 44

What does variation by agreement(49) enatil?

Answer 44

* Bargaining council agreements take preference over other collective agreements. * collective agreements take precedense over individual agreements. * Bargaining council collective agreements may vary/replace/ exclude any condition of employment, provided they do not reduce the core rights of an employee. * individiaul agreements may vary in basic conditions in terms of section 49(3), to the extent permited by the BCEA.

Question 45

What does variation by ministerial determination(50) entail?

Answer 45

* The Minister may replace or exclude any basic condition of employment contained in the BCEA. * may be made at the Minister’s own initiative or on application by an employer. * When a determination is made at the Minister’s initiative, NMWA must be sought and the determination must be published in the Government Gazette (section 50(3)).

Question 46

Where can you find information about sectoral determinations?

Answer 46

chapter 8, section 51-58

Question 47

What does sectoral determinations entail?

Answer 47

* The Minister may make sectoral determination, establishing basic conditions of employment and minimum wages for employees in a particular sector and area (section 51(1)). * NMWA must investigate existing conditions in the sector concerned before making a determination. * the terms of reference for the investigation which are then published in the Government Gazette(section 52(1)-(3)). * takes precedence over the provisions in the BCEA (section 57).

Question 48

Where can you finnd information on monitoring and enforcement?

Answer 48

chapter 10, part A

Question 49

What entails monitoring and enforcement?

Answer 49

* Labour inspectors are appointed in the Department of Labour to monitor and enforce compliance with employment laws (section 63). * labour inspectors conduct inspections and investigate complaints. * written undertaking and compliance as means of enforcement.

Question 50

What entails written undertaking ?

Answer 50

* labour inspector who has reasonable grounds to believe that an employer has not complied with any provision of the BCEA or NMWA will be given a written undertaking to comply. * Inspector may obtain agreement between employee and employer, as to amount owed to employee. * if employer doesnt comply they will be sent to the CCMA.

Question 51

Where can you find information on compliance orders?

Answer 51

chapter 10,section 69-73

Question 52

What does the compliance order entail?

Answer 52

*labour inspector who has reasonable grounds to believe that an employer has not complied with any provision of the BCEA or NMWA will be given a written undertaking to comply. * employer has to pay the employee(s) and may include a fine. * maximum fine that may be imposed on the employer for noncompliance in accordance with Schedule 2 to the BCEA (section 69(1) and (2)). * both parties must have a copy of the written compliance order.