PRACTICAL LABOUR LAW

2 days – 3 days if learners are to be assessed plus exercises for POE

This programme is targeted at middle and junior managers, team leaders, supervisors, foremen, superintendents and trade union representatives.

The course provides a basic platform for labour relations training. The material therefore, including the accompanying instructional DVD, has been designed in Chapters so that if learners are not being assessed, content which is not required may be omitted. Three DVDs are used in the programme – The Kenny Kunene Case featuring an assault on a supervisor during a strike, Selecting for Excellence - The Incompetent Interviewer and the main instructional DVD, Employment Rights & Duties, which ‘drives’ the course, is divided into the following chapters:-

• Overview of Labour Legislation, including common law and contracts of employment.
• Organisational Rights including the role and duties of shop stewards.
• Discipline & Dismissals under the LRA. This is a pre-requisite for B&A disciplinary courses and covers the meaning of dismissal; automatically unfair dismissals; other unfair dismissals and unfair labour practices; disciplinary rules - minor and major transgressions; corrective disciplinary measures; probation and dismissals for poor performance; terminations for incapacity; procedural fairness in misconduct cases including a procedurally unfair enquiry (learners are encouraged to identify errors); the roles of parties in a disciplinary enquiry including the difference between inquisitorial and adversarial enquiries, and the procedure for an adversarial enquiry; making a finding - the balance of probabilities vs beyond reasonable doubt; substantive fairness and disciplinary appeals.
• Grievance & Dispute Procedures.
• Key aspects of the BCEA and EEA.
• LRA/EEA Interview Requirements.
• Key aspects of Skills Development legislation.

Learners receive a Ready Reference booklet with this course, which makes use of various participative training techniques to make what could be a ‘dry’ subject practical and interesting.

IR NEGOTIATING - BEYOND THE BASICS

2 days

This course is targeted at management and union negotiators. It is also available in a different version for conducting commercial negotiations.

The course covers:-

• the use of power;
• bargaining conventions;
• selecting and structuring a negotiating team;
• determining interests;
• identifying issues and elements for negotiation;
• the expectation test - identifying common ground, areas of potential conflict and determining key principles to be used in arguments;
• determining long and short term objectives and a central theme for the negotiation;
• determining strategies, setting bargaining limits and negotiating a mandate;
• how to conduct negotiations including the opening moves, establishing interests and common ground, handling pressure and disruptive tactics, effective questioning and listening techniques, exploring options through trade-offs, linkages and concessions;
• overcoming resistance and using closing techniques; and
  
• the importance of ensuring that the final agreement is clearly understood by both parties and is committed to writing.
  

Three DVDs are used covering the principles of effective negotiating, case preparation and case presentation. Learners are taught how to use a case preparation plan which they apply in role plays based on a commercial negotiation or labour relations wage negotiation or retrenchment. Learners also receive a Ready Reference booklet with this course.

SELECTING FOR EXCELLENCE

2 days hours plus exercises for POE if learners are to be assessed

This course is targeted at Human Resource and Employment Officers, line management, supervisors and members of Employment Equity/Training Committees who are involved in staff recruitment and selection.

Designed around a competency based recruitment process, which fully complies with employment equity regulation, the programme utilises a three part instructional DVD featuring the interview process as undertaken to recruit a cashier. The material also includes sample documentation, which can be used in the recruitment process and retained to protect the employer against allegations of unfair discrimination.

This course covers:-

• Labour Relations and Employment Equity Act requirements in respect of recruitment practices;
• how to plan and prepare for recruitment and selection including analysing the job and preparing a competency based job description, preparing a candidate specification and drafting an effective job advertisement to publicise the position; s
• creening responses and arranging interviews;
• conducting a screening interview to select staff using best practice techniques including putting the applicant at ease, explaining disqualifying factors;
• questioning the applicant on work history and past experience, explaining the job and organisation, answering the applicant’s questions answered, and advising the candidate when further interviews or a response can be expected and how this will be communicated;
• the importance of recording observations about applicants during or immediately after the interview; and
• how to chair or participate as a member in a panel interview to select staff using best practice techniques. This includes:-

1. Panel interviews in which candidates are put at ease.
2. Disqualifying factors are explained.
3. Candidates are questioned on work history and past experience.
4. Observations about candidates are made and recorded; the job and organisation are explained.
5. Candidates’ questions answered.
   
6. Candidates are advised as to when a final decision can be expected and how this will be communicated.

Making a final staff selection, including conducting reference checks and finalizing documentation is also covered. The course is highly participative and learners are given both the knowledge and skills to conduct interviews and make fair selections.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT – THE CODE OF GOOD PRACTICE

1 day HR Managers and Disciplinary Enquiry Chairpersons or 4 hour briefing for employees.

This programme is targeted at Management, Human Resources, Occupational Health practitioners, members of Employment Equity Committees, shop stewards, disciplinary initiators and chairpersons.

This course covers:-

• provisions of the Code of Good Practice on the Handling of Sexual Harassment Cases (Amended 2005) and the employer’s sexual harassment policy;
• the requirements of the Labour Relations Act and rules of evidence as they apply to disciplinary enquires and dismissals for sexual harassment; and
• the risks involved in workplace romances/affairs and the principles to be observed when such relationships flounder.

The course is ‘driven’ by a DVD, SEXUAL HARASSMENT: The Code of Good Practice (Amended 2005) which was specifically developed to facilitate the communication of the Code of Good Practice on the Handling of Sexual Harassment cases and the employer’s sexual harassment policy and procedure.

The DVD covers:-

• the content of the Code;
• what is sexual harassment? Professional actors enact incidents which constitute various forms of sexual harassment;
• the duties and responsibilities of both the employer and employees to create a working environment which is free of sexual harassment;
• the reporting of unwelcome sexual conduct; and
• procedures for handling sexual harassment cases, both formally and informally and the employer’s obligations when handling sexual harassment complaints.

A simplified version aimed at communicating the Code to employees is also available and may be conducted in English or isiZulu by our facilitators.

EMPLOYMENT EQUITY ACT

1 day EE for EE Committee members and managers or 4 hour briefing for employees

This programme is targeted at members of Employment Equity/Training Committees as well as team leaders, supervisors, foremen, superintendents and managers who need a basic understanding of the Employment Equity Act.

Learners who require a basic understanding of the EEA:

• understanding the Employment Equity Act (EEA) as it applies to the employer including the purpose and aims of the EEA and its relationship with other labour legislation and the Constitution;
• what constitutes discrimination and the forms of discrimination prohibited by the EEA including direct and indirect discrimination;
  
• the requirements of medical testing, psychological testing and similar assessment tests as set out in the EEA;
• the meaning of ‘burden of proof’ in disputes pertaining to alleged unfair discrimination is described with examples;
• timeframes for the lodging of disputes pertaining to unfair discrimination; the role of the EE /Training Committee and who should be represented on that committee;
• the process to be followed in implementing employment equity, with specific reference to the organisation’s EE plan, reports and policy and the role of managers;
• barriers that affect disadvantaged people in the organisation;
• Employment Equity plans and the requirements for keeping records, including income differentials, to ensure compliance by employers with the EEA; and
• requirements for winning EE based tenders and the negative impact of ‘window dressing’ and ‘fronting’.

Members of Employment Equity Committees:

• the requirements of the EEA in terms of interviews for employment and promotion including documents that are required to ensure that interviews are conducted strictly in accordance with anti-discrimination legislation;
• discrimination in the employment context, conditions that automatically indicate unfair discrimination and how managers can inadvertently discriminate unfairly in an interview;
• the Skills Development Act (SDA) and SD Levies Act as they apply to the employer, the role of the SETA’s and the legislated relationship between the SETA’s and the employer;
• requirements placed on employers by the SDA and SDLA with reference to the organisation’s workplace skills plan, the annual training report and the claiming back of levies;
• the process to be followed in contributing to the workplace skills plan;
• the concept of lifelong learning and learnerships;
• the role of the Training Committee with reference to its role in the skills development process;
• how to participate effectively as a member of an EE/Training Committee, including an understanding of the role and duties of a Committee member;
• analysing an Employment Equity Plan and Workplace Skills Plan in terms of workplace requirements and how to review the Employment Equity Report; and
• Workplace Skills Implementation Report to ensure it is fit for purpose.

The course is ‘driven’ by a DVD on the EEA narrated by Jack Devnarain.