Employment
Abusive dismissal doctrine makes termination hard
Article 16 of the Labour Contract Act voids a dismissal that lacks objectively reasonable grounds and is not socially acceptable. Courts apply this strictly, especially to redundancies.
Key rules
- Redundancy dismissals are tested against a four-factor judicial framework.
- Fixed-term contracts convert to indefinite on the employee's request after five years.
- Annual paid leave accrues from 10 days after six months of service.
Governing law
- Labour Contract Act (Act No. 128 of 2007)
- Labour Standards Act (Act No. 49 of 1947)
Penalties and consequences
- Reinstatement with back pay, or a negotiated settlement
In practice
Voluntary resignation packages are the standard practical route because contested dismissals are slow and rarely succeed for the employer.