Related documents
- Is commenced by Employment Act (Date of Commencement) Notice, 1981
eSwatini
Employment Act, 1980
Act 5 of 1980
- Assented to on 26 September 1980
- There are multiple commencements
- [This is the version of this document at 1 December 1998.]
Provisions | Status |
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Part I, section 1–3, section 4(a), 4(b), section 5, section 6; Part II (section 7–17); Part III (section 18–20); Part IV, section 21–25, section 26(1), 26(2), 26(3), section 27, section 28–30; Part V, section 32–44; Part VI, section 45–61, section 62(1), 62(2), 62(3), 62(4), section 63, section 64; Part VII (section 65–68); Part VIII (section 69–78); Part IX (section 79–94); Part X (section 95–109); Part XI (section 110–118); Part XII (section 119–132); Part XIII, section 133–136, section 138–143; Part XIV (section 144–147); Part XV (section 148–158) | commenced on 1 November 1981 by Legal Notice 76 of 1981. |
Part I, section 4(c); Part IV, section 26(4); Part V, section 31; Part VI, section 62(5), 62(6); Part XIII, section 137 | commenced on 1 July 1982. |
Part I – Preliminary
1. Short title and commencement
2. Interpretation
For the purposes of this Act—“appointed day” means such day as the Minister may appoint, by order published in the Gazette, for the coming into force of this Act or any Part or provision thereof;“approved form” means a form, register or record approved by the Labour Commissioner for the purposes of this Act;“attesting officer” means an administrative officer or Inspector or an officer designated by the Minister in writing;“business” includes any trade, undertaking or establishment;“calendar year” means the period commencing on the first day of January and ending on the following thirty first day of December;“casual employee” means any employee the terms of whose engagement provides for his payment at the end of each day and who is not engaged for a longer period than twenty four hours at a time;“chief” has the meaning ascribed thereto by the Swazi Administration Act, 1950;“Chief Medical Officer” means the person appointed in the Public Service to be the Chief Medical Officer;“child” means a person under age of fifteen years;“collective agreement” means an agreement in writing covering terms and conditions of employment and procedures for the settlement of disputes and grievances, concluded by a joint industrial council, or by a works council; or by an employer, a group of employers, or an employers’ association on the one hand and an industry union or staff association on the other hand;“competent person” means a person possessing qualifications or experience or both necessary for some purpose under this Act;“confinement” means labour resulting in the issue of a living child, or labour after twenty-eight weeks of pregnancy resulting in the issue of a child, living or dead;“continuous employment” means a period of unbroken service with the same employer, including a period of unbroken service as a casual employee with the same employer; and for the purposes of this definition the following shall not constitute a break in service—(a)absence from work due to sickness, injury or maternity certified by a medical practitioner;(b)absence from work due to a trade dispute where the employee resumes his employment on the next working day following the settlement of the dispute;(c)absence from work due to a temporary cessation of work in the undertaking;(d)absence from work on leave or for any other cause approved by the employer;and “continuously employed” shall be construed accordingly;“contract” means in respect of Part XIII a public contract;“contract of employment” means a contract of service, apprenticeship or traineeship whether it is express or implied and, if it is express, whether it is oral or in writing;“contractor” means—(a)in respect of this Act in general, an employer working under a contract for services;(b)in relation to a principal a person who has contracted directly with such principal to perform any work for him;(c)in respect of Part XIII a contractor within the general meaning assigned to the work who has entered into a public contract;and the term “sub-contractor” shall be construed accordingly;“court” means a Magistrates Court;“dispute” includes a grievance or a trade dispute and means any dispute over—(a)the entitlement of any person or group of persons to any benefit under an existing collective agreement, or works council agreement;(b)the existence or non-existence of a collective agreement or works council agreement;(c)the dismissal, employment, suspension from employment, re-employment or re-instatement of any person or group of persons;(d)the recognition or non-recognition of an organisation seeking to represent employees in the determination of their terms and conditions of employment;(e)the application or the interpretation of any law relating to employment; or(f)the terms and conditions of employment of any employee or the physical conditions under which such employee may be required to work;“domestic employee” includes any person employed for wages in or about a private dwelling house by the owner or occupier of such house;“employee” means any person to whom wages are paid or are payable under a contract of employment;“employer” means any person or undertaking, contractor, corporation, company, public authority or body of persons who or which has entered into a contract of employment with an employee and includes—(a)any agent, representative, foreman or manager of such person, undertaking, corporation, public authority or body of persons who is placed in authority over that employee; and(b)in the case of any such person—(i)who has died, his executor;(ii)who has become of unsound mind, his Curator Bonis;(iii)who has become an insolvent, the trustee of his insolvent estate;(iv)which is a company in liquidation, the liquidator of the company;“foreign contract of employment” means a contract of employment made under the provisions of Part VIII;“immediate family” means, in relation to a person such person’s father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, stepfather, stepmother, son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, stepson, stepdaughter, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, wife, husband, common-law wife or common-law husband;“Industrial Court” means an industrial court established by law;“industrial undertaking” means—(a)mines, quarries and other works for the extraction of minerals from the earth;(b)undertakings in which articles are manufactured, altered, cleaned repaired, ornamented, finished, adapted for sale, broken up or demolished or in which materials are transformed, including undertakings engaged in ship building or in the generation, transformation or transmission of electricity or motive power of any kind;(c)undertakings engaged in building and civil engineering work, including constructional repair maintenance, alteration and demolition work;(d)undertakings engaged in the transport of passengers or goods, including the handling of goods at docks, quays, wharves, ware-house or airports;“Inspector” means any person appointed or deemed to have been appointed as Deputy Labour Commissioner, Senior Labour Officer, Labour Officer, Factories Inspector or Labour Inspector in the public service and includes any other person to whom the Labour Commissioner has delegated in writing, the powers of an Inspector“Labour Commissioner” means the person appointed in the Public Service to be the Labour Commissioner and includes any person authorised in writing by the Labour Commissioner to act on his behalf;“legal tender” has the meanings ascribed thereto by the Currency Order 1974;“liquor” has the meaning assigned to “liquor” in the law relating to liquor licensing’“maternity leave” means leave granted to an employee arising from, or in contemplating of, her confinement;“medical practitioner” has the meaning ascribed thereto by the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act, 1970;“midwife” has the meaning ascribed thereto by the Nurses and Midwives Act, 1965;“Minister” means the Minister for the time being responsible for Labour;“mine” includes any undertaking, whether public or private, for the winning, treatment or extraction of minerals from the earth, sea, rivers or inland waters;“mineral” has the meaning ascribed thereto by the Mining Act, 1958;“month” a period commencing on any day in a calendar month and expiring on the day preceding the corresponding date in the succeeding calendar month;“night” means the period commencing at 9.00p.m. on one day and ending at 7.00a.m. on the following day;“notice” means in respect of the termination of employment, notice of termination of employment;“organisation” has the same meaning as in the Industrial Relations Act;“outworker” means a person to whom materials or articles are given out to be made up, cleaned, washed, altered, ornamented, finished or repaired or adapted for sale in his own home or on other premises not under the control or management of the person who gave out the materials or articles;“paid public holiday” means a public holiday on which an employee is entitled to a holiday on full pay in pursuance of a Wages Regulation Order or a collective agreement covering his terms and conditions of employment;“pay day” means the day or date fixed by the employer as the day on which he shall pay his employee wages due to him;“parent” in relation to a child or young person includes a guardian and every person who has the actual custody of the child or young person;“piece work” means any work the payment for which is calculated by the amount of work performed, irrespective of the time occupied in its performance;“place of employment” means any place at or in which an employee works and the term “workplace” shall be construed accordingly;“prescribed” means prescribed by the Minister by Order in the Gazette;“public authority” means the Government or a local authority or the Ngwenyama in Council;“public officer” includes any officer of a public authority;“public contract” means a contract involving the expenditure of funds by the Government or by any statutory body, whether corporate or unincorporate, for—(a)the construction, alteration, repair, or demolition of public works;(b)the manufacture, assembly, handling or shipment of materials, supplies or equipment;(c)the performance or supply of services; or(d)the supply of goods;“recruit” means the undertaking of any operation with the object of obtaining or supplying the labour of employees who do not spontaneously offer their services at the place of employment, or at an employment exchange, or at an office conducted by an employers’ organisation established for the purpose of receiving applications for employment;“redundant employee” means an employee whose contract of employment has been terminated—(a)because the employer has ceased, or intends to cease to carry on the business or activity in which the employee was employed; or(b)because the employer has ceased or intends to cease to carry on business in or at the place in which the employee was employed; or(c)because of any of the following reasons connected with the operation of the business—(i)modernization, mechanisation, or any other change in the method of production which reduces the number of employees necessary;(ii)the closure of any part or department of the business;(iii)marketing or financial difficulties;(iv)alteration in products or production methods necessitating different skills on the part of employees;(v)lack of orders or shortage of materials;(vi)scarcity of means of production;(vii)contraction in the volume of business;(d)because of a natural disaster if the termination is wholly or mainly attributable to the destruction of, or damage caused to, the employers place of business by fire, hurricane, earthquake or other act of God, whether or not similar to any of the foregoing causes;“redundancy and redundancies” shall be construed in the context of “redundant employee”;“seasonal contract” means a contract of service, the period of which cannot be pre-determined, entered into for a particular season, or for work to be performed on or in connection with a special project;“severance allowance” means the allowance to which an employee is entitled under section 34;“temporary cessation of work” means a situation in which a business or part of a business has temporarily ceased or diminished, but where the employer/employee relationship subsists and where it is the intention of the employer to resume normal working as soon as possible;“undertaking” means any industrial undertaking and any of the following establishments, businesses or undertakings whether public or private, which is wholly or mainly engaged in—(a)the sale, purchase, distribution, insurance, negotiation, loan or administration of goods of any kind;(b)the provision of an administrative service in which the persons employed are mainly engaged in clerical work;(c)the production, printing or publication of a newspaper;(d)the treatment or care of children, or aged, destitute, infirm, mentally unfit or sick persons;(e)the operation of a boarding house, café, club, hotel, restaurant or any other place for refreshment or public entertainment;(f)the operation of any broadcasting, postal or telecommunication service or the production of cinematographic films;(g)any other service similar to the foregoing;but does not include—(i)any undertaking in which only members of the employer’s immediate family are employed;(ii)domestic employment in or about a private dwelling house;(iii)any undertaking or part thereof declared by the Minister in writing to be an agricultural undertaking;“wages” means remuneration or earnings including allowances, however designated or calculated, capable of being expressed in terms of money and fixed by mutual agreement or by law which are payable by an employer to an employee for work done or to be done under a contract of employment or for services rendered or to be rendered under such contract;“week” means any period of seven consecutive days;“wife” means a person married according to Swazi law or other law or custom recognised within Swaziland, and if under such law or custom more marriages than one validly exist at the relevant time, then the person first married under such law or custom;“woman” means a female of the apparent age of eighteen years or upwards;“work” means any work or labour, whether skilled or unskilled, carried out by an employee for an employer for wages;“young person” means a person who has attained the age of fifteen years but is under the age of eighteen years;3. Contracting out
Except as expressly provided by this Act any arrangement by any person to contract out of its provisions shall be null and void.4. Status of collective agreements
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as making a collective agreement binding on any party unless the collective agreement—5. Act binds Government
Subject to section 6, the provisions of this Act shall apply to employment with, by, or under the Government, other than to employment in the Royal Swaziland Police Force, the Umbutfo Swaziland Defence Force and the Swaziland Prison service.6. Minister may exempt
Part II – Administration
7. Enforcement and administration
The Labour Commissioner shall be responsible to the Minister for the application, enforcement and administration of this Act and for such other matters relating to employment as the Minister may direct.8. Powers and duties of Labour Commissioner
In addition to any other powers or duties given to him under this Act or any other law, the Labour Commissioner shall—9. Powers and duties of Inspectors
10. Certificates of appointment
Every Inspector shall be given a certificate of appointment in the prescribed form and, when visiting any premises in the execution of his duty shall, if so required by an employer or his representative, produce the certificate as proof of his identity.11. Duties and obligations of Inspectors
12. Annual reports to be published
13. Supply of information
14. Delegation of powers
15. Offences under this Part
16. Persons not required to supply incriminating information
Notwithstanding any provision of this Act relating to the questioning of any person or to supply of information, no person shall be required to answer any question or supply any information tending to incriminate him.17. Instituting of proceedings
The Labour Commissioner or an Inspector may institute proceedings in the name of the Labour Commissioner against any person for any contravention of, or offence committed under this Act and may appear in and conduct any such proceedings.Part III – Labour Advisory Board
18. Establishment of Labour Advisory Board
19. Duties of the Board
The Board shall consider and advise the Minister upon any matter affecting employment and labour referred to the Board by the Minister and without prejudice to the generality of this requirement, such matters shall include—20. Quorum and meetings of the Board
Part IV – Contracts of employment
21. Application
22. Written particulars to be provided
23. Employer and employee to sign form
24. Minister may vary form
The Minister may, after consultation with the Labour Advisory Board, amend the form in the Second Schedule.25. Form not to be deemed written contract
In any proceedings arising out of the provisions of this Act, a copy of the form in the Second Schedule signed by both the employer and the employee, shall be accepted as prima facie evidence of the matters contained therein at the time it was signed, but nothing in this Act shall deem the form to be a written contract of employment.26. Changes in terms of employment
27. Contracts not to conflict with law
No contract of employment shall provide for any employee any less favourable condition than is required by any law. Any condition in a contract of employment which does not conform with this Act or any other law shall be null and void and the contract shall be interpreted as if for that condition there were substituted the appropriate condition required by law.28. Existing contracts to continue in force
All contracts of employment valid and in force at the commencement of this Act shall continue to be in force after such commencement, and to the extent that they are not in conflict with this Act shall be deemed to be made thereunder and the parties thereto shall be subject to and entitled to the benefits of the provisions of this Act.29. No discrimination on grounds of sex etc.
No employer shall, in any contract of employment between himself and an employee discriminate against any person or between employees on grounds of race, colour, religion, marital status, sex, national origin, tribal or clan extraction, political affiliation or social status.30. Offences under this Part
Any employer who—Part V – Termination of contracts of employment
31. Application
This Part of the Act shall apply to every contract of employment made within Swaziland and to be performed wholly within Swaziland.32. Probationary period
33. Periods of notice by employer and employee
33bis. Payment of all benefits before selling business
34. Severance allowance
35. Employee’s services not to be unfairly terminated
36. Fair reasons for the termination of an employee’s services
It shall be fair for an employer to terminate the services of an employee for any of the following reasons—37. Termination of services due to employer’s conduct
When the conduct of an employer towards an employee is proved by that employee to have been such that the employee can no longer reasonably be expected to continue in his employment and accordingly leaves his employment, whether with or without notice, then the services of the employee shall be deemed to have been unfairly terminated by his employer.38. Certificate of employment
Any employee whose services are terminated shall be entitled to receive on request, at the time of such termination, a certificate from his employer specifying the dates of his engagement and termination and the nature of the work on which he has been employed.39. Suspension of employee
40. Employer to give notice of redundancies
41. Remedies against unfair termination of services
42. Burden of proof
43. Repatriation of employees
44. Offences under this Part
Any employer who—Part VI – Protection of wages
45. Agreement of co-operation
Nothing in this Part shall be held to apply to any body of persons working on an agreement of co-operation.46. Wages to be paid in legal tender
47. Wages when due
48. Remuneration other than wages
An employer may, in pursuance of a written agreement with an employee, pay to that employee, in addition to monetary wages, allowances in kind which shall—49. Wages not to be paid on certain premises
No employer shall pay wages to an employee at or within any retail shop or place for the sale of any liquor, or any office or place belonging thereto, except where the employer is the resident owner or occupier of such retail shop, office or place and he pays wages to an employee employed by him in such retail shop, office or place.50. Times and places of payment
51. Sale of goods or services by employer to employees
52. Special provision for service charges
53. Agreements as to place and manner of spending wages illegal
No employer shall include in any contract of employment between himself and an employee any condition, restriction or requirement as to the manner in which, or the person with whom, and wages paid to the employee are to be expended and any such condition, restriction or requirement shall be illegal.54. Priority of wages
55. Interest on advances prohibited
No employer shall make any deduction by way of discount, interest or similar charge on account of any advance of wages made to an employee in anticipation of the regular period of payment of such wages.56. Authorised deductions from wages
57. Further restrictions on deductions
58. Deduction for obtaining employment prohibited
No deduction shall be made from the wages due to any employee either in the form of retention by the employer or for payment to a third party for the purpose of obtaining or retaining employment.59. Illegal advances to be irrecoverable
All advances made otherwise than in accordance with this Act shall be unlawful and irrecoverable in any court whether by way of counter claim, set off or otherwise.60. Saving as to judgment debts
During the period of his contract of employment, an employee receiving an advance of wages shall not, by reason only of such advance, be deemed to have or to have had means and ability to pay any sum due from him under any judgment of a court.61. Employers to issue details of wage payments
62. Security for the payment of wages
63. Exclusions
The Minister may, after consultation with the Labour Advisory Board, by order published in the Gazette, exclude from any or all of the provisions of this Part, any employee or category of employee who—64. Offences and penalties
An employer who—Part VII – Registration of employers
65. Interpretation
For the purposes of this Part, the expression—“employee” shall not include a domestic employee;“Fund” means the Swaziland National Provident Fund established by the Swaziland National Provident Fund Order 1974.66. Delivery of documents from the Fund
67. Non-contribution employers to deliver documents
Any person who employs five or more employees who has not registered as a contributing employer to the fund or whose registration as a contributing employer to the Fund has been terminated for any reason, or who for any reason is not required to register himself as a contributing employer to the Fund, shall within ten days after the coming into effect of this Part, or within ten days after beginning to employ five or more employees, deliver to the Labour Commissioner a document containing every particular which is required to be included in an application for registration as a contributing employer to the Fund.68. Labour Commissioner to maintain registry
The Labour Commissioner shall keep each document received by him under section 66 or section 67 in a registry of employers maintained in such manner as to facilitate the administration and enforcement of every Act, Order or other statutory instrument with respect to which the Industrial Court, the Labour Commissioner or any inspector has any administrative or enforcement function.Part VIII – Foreign contracts of employment
69. Application of Part
This Part of the Act shall apply in respect of every foreign contract of employment that is to say, a contract of employment made within Swaziland and to be performed substantially outside Swaziland.70. Particulars in foreign contracts and requirements as to attestation
71. Medical examination of employees
An employer who brings a person before an attesting officer for attestation in accordance with section 70 shall produce to the attesting officer a certificate, signed by a medical practitioner, to the effect that the practitioner has examined such person and found him to be in a sound state of health and physically capable of performing the employment referred to in the contract.72. Termination of contract
73. Transport and welfare employees
The employer or the labour agent, as may be applicable, shall at his own expense provide an employee with transport to his place of employment and for his repatriation, and shall take all necessary steps to ensure that—74. Repatriation of employees
75. Printing of summaries in the English and siSwati languages
The Labour Commissioner shall, where he considers it necessary, cause concise summaries of this Part of the Act to be printed in the English and siSwati languages and may—76. Age of employees entering into contracts
No person shall enter into a foreign contract of employment with another person under the age of eighteen years nor employ any person under such age on a foreign contract of employment.77. Regulations
Without prejudice to the power of the Minister to make regulations under any other provision of this Act, the Minister may make regulations—78. Offences and penalties
Any person who—Part IX – Recruiting
79. Application
This Part applies to the recruiting of persons for employment on foreign contract of employment.80. Restriction on recruitment
81. Licensing of labour agents
(a) | for a licence granted for a period of up to one month and permitting the recruitment or engagement of up to twenty five persons during that period | E25.00 |
(b) | for a licence granted for a period exceeding one month | E200.00 |
(c) | for a temporary licence granted to a person acting instead of and during the temporary absence from Swaziland of the labour agent to whom a licence has been issued under paragraph (b) above—for each month or part thereof of such absence. | E25.00 |
82. Conditions of labour agent’s licences
83. Recruiting assistants
(a) | for a permit granted for a period of up to one month | E25.00 |
(b) | for a permit granted for a period in excess of one month | E35.00 |
84. Unauthorised recruiting assistants
A person who is not in possession of a valid permit as required by section 83 shall not canvas or recruit on behalf of a labour agent.85. Liability for acts of recruiting assistants
86. Application for labour agent’s licence
87. Revocation or suspension of labour agent’s licence
88. Production of licences and permits
The Labour Commissioner, an Inspector, an administrative officer or police officer, may at any time demand the production, by a person exercising the functions of a labour agent or a recruiting assistant, of the licence or permit of such person.89. Court may order payments to be made from security
Where—90. Forms, documents and records to be kept by labour agents
Every labour agent shall maintain the following forms, documents and records in respect of all persons recruited and/or forwarded by him for employment on foreign contracts of employment—91. False representation
No person shall induce any other person to engage himself for employment by either a representation as to terms and conditions which he knows to be false, or a promise as to terms and conditions of employment which he knows himself to be unable to fulfil or has no intention of fulfilling.92. Advances
93. Fixing of maximum recruitment and grouping of recruited employees
94. Offences and penalties
Any person who—Part X – Special provisions covering the employment of women, young persons, children and domestic employees
95. Interpretation and application
96. Equal pay for equal work
97. Employment of children
98. Employment of young persons
99. Minister may grant exemptions
100. Medical examination of young persons
101. Employment of females
102. Maternity leave
103. Duration of maternity leave
104. Additional leave
An employee who suffers any illness arising out of her confinement, shall be granted, in addition to the maternity leave to which she is entitled under section 103, such additional leave, not exceeding six weeks, as a medical practitioner may recommend.105. Protection of employment
106. Protection of seniority
Where an employee resumes employment after being granted maternity leave or additional leave under section 104 she shall be entitled to continue in her former work or equivalent work without loss of seniority and she shall not, by reason only of the fact that she went on maternity leave, be paid lower wages or employed on less advantageous terms and conditions than those which applied to her employment before she went on leave.107. No obligation to pay for maternity leave
Except as provided in section 102, nothing in this part shall be construed as requiring any employer to pay an employee for any time spent on maternity leave.[Replaced A.5/1997]108. Special provisions for domestic employees
109. Offences and penalties
Part XI – Employment services
110. Interpretation
For the purposes of this Part the expression—“employment exchange” means any office or place established by the Labour Commissioner for the following purposes—(a)the maintenance of a register or registers of persons seeking employ-ment and of employers seeking to engage workers in Swaziland;(b)to direct persons seeking employment to vacancies for which, by their training, skill and previous experience they may be suited;(c)to collect and provide information to workseekers regarding employment opportunities, and to prospective employers regarding workseekers;(d)to help devise special employment placement plans for persons who are physically handicapped, or who have been declared redundant and who require vocational retraining.“private employment agency” means the business (whether or not it is carried on for profit or whether or not it is carried on in conjunction with any other business) of providing services or information for the purpose of finding persons employment in Swaziland with employers in Swaziland or of supplying employers with persons for employment by them.111. Evidence of skill and experience and particulars of employment vacancies
112. Private employment agencies to be authorised
113. Power to inspect etc.
An Inspector may, in addition to any other powers conferred on him by this Act—114. Records and registers
Every person who holds a licence to operate a private employment agency shall keep or cause to be kept such registers and records, and shall submit to the Labour Commissioner such returns as may be prescribed.115. Restriction on charges
No person carrying on a private employment agency shall charge to prospective employers fees or expenses in excess of those contained in a scale of fees and expenses approved in writing by the Labour Commissioner.116. Exemptions
Nothing in this Part shall apply to—117. Regulations
Without prejudice to the power of the Minister to make regulations under any other provision of this Act, the Minister may make regulations for any of the following purposes—118. Offences and penalties
Any person who—Part XII – Annual holidays and sick leave
119. Application
This Part shall not apply to—120. Employer to give paid annual holidays
121. Entitlement to paid annual holidays
122. Paid holiday to be given within a certain period
123. Payment for annual holiday when employment is terminated
124. Continuity of employment
For the purpose of this Part, employment shall be deemed to continue so long as the employee continues to be employed in the undertaking and shall be deemed not to be discontinued by the termination of any contract of employment entered into by the employee, if within a period of seven days of such termination such employee is re-engaged in the same undertaking.125. Wages in respect of annual holiday
126. Public holidays occurring during annual holiday
Where during any annual holiday or part thereof being taken by an employee, any paid public holiday occurs, the period of the annual holiday shall be increased by one day in respect of that public holiday and wages payable to the employee in respect of the annual holiday shall include one day’s wages for each such public holiday.127. Record of annual holiday
128. Agreement contrary to Act null and void
Any agreement by an employee to forego his entitlement to the paid holiday provided for by this Act, even in return for compensation, shall be null and void.129. Payment during sickness
130. Sickness to be certified by medical practitioner
131. Offences and penalties
Any employer who—132. Power to order payments on conviction
Where a prosecution for an offence under this Part has been instituted, a court may, in addition to any fine or sentence it may impose, order an employer convicted of such an offence to pay to the employee any payments due to him under this Part.Part XIII – Labour clauses (Public contract)
133. Provisions etc. deemed to be included in public contract
Every public contract shall be deemed to include and to incorporate the provisions contained in this Part to all intents and purposes as if the same were expressly set out as conditions or covenants therein to be observed and performed on the part of either or both of the parties to the contract.134. Wages to be paid and conditions of employment to be observed
A contractor shall pay rates of wages and observe hours and conditions of employment (hereinafter referred to as established rates and conditions) not less favourable than those established by collective agreement covering a substantial proportion of employees and employers in the trade or industry concerned in the contract.135. Labour Commissioner to prepare schedule of wages etc.
In the absence of any established rates and conditions as defined in section 134, the Labour Commissioner shall, after consultation with representatives of employers and representatives of employees in the trade or industry concerned, prepare a schedule of wages and conditions of employment to be observed in the execution of the contract, having regard to—136. Contractor to certify wages and conditions
Before being awarded a public contract the contractor shall certify in writing, that the wages and hours and conditions of work of persons to be employed by him on the contract are not less favourable than the established rates and conditions as defined in section 134, or those contained in the schedule prepared by the Labour Commissioner in accordance with section 135, as the case may be.137. Industrial Court to decide questions on wages etc.
138. Provisions applicable to sub-contracts
139. Contractor to file certificates
A contractor shall not be entitled to payment of any money which would otherwise be payable under the terms of the contract unless he has filed, together with his claim for payment, a certificate—140. Contractor to supply information
A contractor shall provide the Labour Commissioner with such information as the Labour Commissioner may require to satisfy him that the conditions of this Part have been complied with.141. Labour Commissioner may arrange for employees to be paid
Where the Labour Commissioner is satisfied that a contractor has defaulted in the payment of wages due to any employee employed on a contract, he may, failing payment of such wages by the contractor, arrange for the payment of the wages to the employee out of any sum payable to the contractor under the contract and the amount so paid shall be deemed to be a payment to the contractor.142. Contractor to display notices containing conditions of work
Every contractor shall keep displayed in a conspicuous place in his establishment and work places for the information of the employees employed therein a notice containing the conditions of their work and so printed that it may easily be read by all employees.143. Failure to comply with this Part
Where a contractor fails to comply with any of the requirements of this Part, the Government may, upon the recommendations of the Labour Commissioner, withdraw its approval of such contractor as an approved contractor for such period and on such conditions as the Government may determine.Part XIV – Forced labour
144. Interpretation
145. Exaction of forced labour prohibited
Any person who exacts or imposes forced labour or causes or permits forced labour to be exacted or imposed contrary to this Part shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of five hundred Emalangeni or to imprisonment for six months.146. Concessions not to include forced labour
No concession granted to any person shall involve any form of forced labour for the production or collection of products which such private person utilizes or in which he trades.147. Penalty for official coercion
Any person who, acting in his official capacity, puts any coercion upon the population under his charge, or upon any individual members of such population to work for any private individual, company or association shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of not exceeding three thousand Emalangeni or to imprisonment not exceeding one year or both.[Amended A.5/1997]Part XV – Miscellaneous
148. Application
The provisions of sections 149, 150 and 151 shall not apply to the employment of a domestic employee by any employer.149. General health measures
150. First aid equipment and medical aid
151. Records and registers
152. Housing
Where an employer is employed in circumstances where it is impracticable, for reasons of distance, for him to return to his home or normal place of residence at the end of his day’s work, his employer shall cause such employee to be housed in such manner as may be prescribed.153. Feeding of employees
154. Notices
Every employer who is a party to a collective agreement covering the terms and conditions of service of any of his employees, shall, by the fixing of a notice where it can be seen and read by such employees, indicate the existence of such agreement, the parties signatory to it, the dates of its commencement and expiry and the place where a copy of the agreement can be examined.155. Offences and penalties
156. Criminal liability of officers of body corporate
157. Regulations
The Minister may make regulations for prescribing anything which is required to be prescribed or for any purpose for the better carrying out of this Act.158. Repeal
The following laws are repealed—The Employment Act, 1962.The Labour Advisory Board Act, 1966.The Employees Wages Protection Order, 1973.The Registration of Employers Order, 1975.History of this document
01 December 1998 this version
Consolidation
01 July 1982
Commenced
01 November 1981
Commenced by
Employment Act (Date of Commencement) Notice, 1981
26 September 1980
Assented to