The Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) hosted the annual Labour Law Seminar from 11-13 August 2025 at Emperor’s Palace in Kempton Park. The seminar, themed “Adapting to an evolving labour landscape to promote social injustice”, was aimed at enhancing and promoting critical discussions on developments in the field of employment law in the public service sector, with specific focus on education labour disputes. The seminar presented an opportunity for practitioners in the labour relations environment within the public service and unions, to work together to forge collaboration to meet the demands of the business world affected by global economic challenges.
Judge President Mogomotsi Molatlhegi of the Labour Court and Labour Appeals Court opened the seminar and set the tone for the three-day deliberations that followed. Law experts made presentations based on case studies demonstrating best labour practices in workplaces, management of conflict in the workplace, the impact of constitutional law on evidence rules, the draft code of good practice on dismissal and unfair promotion disputes in the workplace, among others. Director of Mediate Works Mr Ebrahim Patelia who has written and presented on topics of negotiations and collective bargaining presented a “human approach” analysis of managing conflict by referring to pointers employers could utilize to achieve fairness, which include workplace mediation, informal procedures, grievance procedures and formal discipline. During his presentation Mr Patelia said: “Management has prerogative to manage the resources, strategy, operations, workers, and the finances of the business. In respect of workers, managers have the prerogative to hire, set rules, standards and hold employees accountable.” He however concluded by quoting Section 185 of the Labour Relations Act, which states that “every employee has the right not to be unfairly dismissed”.
UNISA Senior Lecturer Mr Lux Kubjana presented on matters of Law as it relates to Sexual Harassment through several case studies, and Economist and Research Chair in Equality, Law and Social Justice at WITS Prof Cathi Albertyn led discussions on inequality in the Constitution, while former Principal and current National Executive of the SAOU Mr Paul Sauer painted a hopeful picture of the published SASA Act as amended (BELA) as a significant contribution to the advancement of a culture of human rights in schools.
Secretary-General of the ELRC Dr Nolusindiso Foca emphasized the need to engage in an open dialogue about how courts are dealing with labour matters in the education workspace. “The Labour Relation Act has been in existence for almost 30 years, and this seminar is about assessing how far we’ve come as a country and the feasibility of amending the Law to align with a changing workplace. DG Mathanzima Mweli emphasized virtues of honesty, fairness and integrity; in the engagement between employer and employee, those fundamentals are key.”
The three-day seminar concluded with robust discussions about the way forward in incorporating critical matters such as fostering inclusion that promotes access to decent work for people with disabilities and embedding social justice in teacher education and development in Africa.