Unfair Labour Practice Lawyers in Randburg

An unfair labour practice under the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 is one of four defined categories — unfair conduct by the employer relating to promotion, demotion, probation, training, or the provision of benefits; unfair suspension or other unfair disciplinary action short of dismissal; failure or refusal to re-instate or re-employ a former employee under an agreement; or occupational detriment after a protected disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act 26 of 2000 — and a Randburg-based employee or employer must refer the dispute to the CCMA or relevant Bargaining Council within 90 days. Burger Huyser Attorneys runs these files from its Randburg head office (011 888 0246), under specialist consultant Marius Ferreira.

What an Unfair Labour Practice Actually Is Under the LRA

Section 186(2) defines an unfair labour practice as one of four closed categories. If the conduct does not fit one of them, it is not an unfair labour practice under the LRA (though it may still be actionable as unfair dismissal or discrimination).

Category	Typical trigger	Typical remedy
Promotion / demotion / probation / training / benefits	Constructive demotion; non-confirmation at end of probation; denied training or benefits.	Compensation; reinstatement
Unfair suspension or disciplinary action short of dismissal	Unfair warning; suspension without pay.	Setting aside the warning; back-pay
Failure to re-instate / re-employ per agreement	Retrenchment conditional on re-engagement that the employer did not honour.	Re-engagement; compensation in lieu
Occupational detriment after a protected disclosure	Prejudice for whistle-blowing under the Protected Disclosures Act 26 of 2000.	Compensation; reinstatement; damages

The 90-Day Referral Deadline

An unfair labour practice dispute must be referred to the CCMA or relevant Bargaining Council within 90 days of the act or omission. The clock runs from the act or omission, not from when the client first contacted a lawyer. Late referrals are routinely refused unless the employee shows good cause and the threshold is high. Where a Bargaining Council has jurisdiction, the dispute must be referred to that council first — the wrong forum is itself a fatal defect.

Where the Dispute Goes: Forum Layers

1. Conciliation — a CCMA commissioner or conciliator tries to settle the dispute. Confidential and non-binding, but a mandatory prerequisite.
2. Arbitration — either party can request arbitration within 90 days of the certificate of non-resolution. The arbitrator hears evidence and issues an award.
3. Labour Court review — awards can be reviewed at the Labour Court (Gauteng Division, Johannesburg seat) on narrow grounds: gross irregularity, arbitrator misconduct, exceeding powers, or a material mistake of law.
4. Labour Appeal Court and Constitutional Court — appeals run to the Labour Appeal Court, then the Constitutional Court on constitutional issues.

Remedies the CCMA Can Award

• Compensation — capped at 12 months’ remuneration for unfair labour practices and ordinary unfair dismissals. Where the dispute overlaps with an automatically unfair dismissal (e.g. dismissal for a protected disclosure), the cap rises to 24 months.
• Setting aside a warning, reinstatement, or back-pay — the remedy tracks the underlying conduct.
• Costs orders — generally each side bears its own costs, but the CCMA can award costs for grossly unreasonable or frivolous conduct.

Common Unfair Labour Practice Scenarios

• Promotion disputes — a strong performer repeatedly passed over.
• Demotion in all but name — same title, but staff, budget, and authority stripped.
• Unfair warning — issued without a fair enquiry or with a disproportionate sanction.
• Probation non-confirmation — probation ends without fair assessment.
• Denied training or benefits — a contracted entitlement refused.
• Post-retrenchment re-engagement — the employer committed to re-engage and did not.

Why Engage a Labour Law Specialist

1. Statutory knowledge — the LRA’s four categories are not intuitive; a specialist maps the facts to the correct one.
2. Forum selection — Bargaining Council vs CCMA depends on industry and bargaining unit status.
3. 90-day window — a specialist calendars the deadline from the first consultation.
4. Evidentiary discipline — a specialist prepares the bundle in the format commissioners expect.
5. Labour Court review — a specialist knows whether an unfavourable award has a defensible ground.

Burger Huyser Attorneys’ Labour Law practice is led by specialist consultant Marius Ferreira, who runs these files from the Randburg head office through to CCMA representation and any necessary Labour Court review.

The Local Filing Layer: Randburg and the Gauteng CCMA Footprint

Randburg sits within the City of Johannesburg, and Randburg-based employees are referred to the CCMA’s Johannesburg offices. There is no separate CCMA office inside Randburg, and the matter does not start at the Randburg Magistrate’s Court or Regional Court (those forums hear criminal and civil matters). The Randburg area falls within the catchment of several Bargaining Councils (metal and engineering, motor, retail). Arbitration awards and review proceedings run through the Gauteng Division of the Labour Court; review applications under section 158(1) of the LRA must be filed within the prescribed time limits.

Practical Considerations

Practical point	What to expect
Cost	Fees depend on whether the matter settles at conciliation, proceeds to arbitration, or is taken on review.
Timeline	Conciliation is typically scheduled 4–6 weeks after referral. Arbitration is heard 3–6 months later. A Labour Court review adds another 6–12 months.
What to bring	Employment contract; policies and disciplinary code; the act or omission letter; personnel file and performance reviews; payslips; the Bargaining Council agreement if any.

Frequently Asked Questions

What counts as an unfair labour practice under South African law?

The Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 defines an unfair labour practice as one of four closed categories: (1) unfair conduct by the employer relating to promotion, demotion, probation, training or the provision of benefits; (2) unfair suspension or other unfair disciplinary action short of dismissal, including an unfair written or final warning; (3) failure or refusal by an employer to re-instate or re-employ a former employee in terms of any agreement; and (4) occupational detriment after a protected disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act 26 of 2000. If the conduct does not fit one of these four, it may still be actionable as unfair dismissal, unfair discrimination, or an automatically unfair dismissal — but it will not be an unfair labour practice under the LRA.

How long do I have to refer an unfair labour practice dispute?

An unfair labour practice dispute must be referred to the CCMA or the relevant Bargaining Council within 90 days of the act or omission. The 90 days run from the date the employer took the decision or action, not from the date the employee first contacted a lawyer. Late referrals can sometimes be condoned if the employee shows good cause, but the threshold is high and the safer course is to refer within the deadline.

Do I go to the CCMA or to the Labour Court directly?

Unfair labour practice disputes start at conciliation — either at the CCMA or, where a Bargaining Council covers the employer, at that Bargaining Council’s conciliation process. If conciliation fails and the dispute is arbitrable (which unfair labour practice disputes are), either party can request arbitration. The Labour Court only gets involved later, on review of an arbitration award or in certain disputes the LRA reserves to the Court directly. Going to the Labour Court without first conciliating is a procedural defect.

What compensation can the CCMA award for an unfair labour practice?

For unfair labour practices and ordinary unfair dismissals, the CCMA can award compensation up to the equivalent of 12 months’ remuneration at the employee’s rate at the time of the dispute. Where the dispute overlaps with an automatically unfair dismissal (for example, dismissal for a protected disclosure), the cap rises to 24 months’ remuneration. The CCMA can also order reinstatement, re-engagement, back-pay for unfair suspension, or the setting aside of an unfair warning — the remedy tracks the underlying unfair conduct.

Where is the Burger Huyser Randburg office, and what are the hours?

49 First Avenue, Linden, Randburg, 2195. Telephone 011 888 0246, with an after-hours line on 061 516 6878 for urgent labour and bail matters. The office is open Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:30pm. The Randburg head office is the firm’s main intake point for unfair labour practice, CCMA, and Labour Court files for clients across Johannesburg and the broader Randburg municipal area.

Does the firm act for both employees and employers in unfair labour practice disputes?

Yes — the firm’s Labour Law practice handles both employee and employer instructions. Where the firm has advised the employer on the same conduct in a separate matter, a conflict check is run at intake and the firm may decline or refer one side to another firm; this is a standard professional-conduct safeguard rather than a one-sided practice policy.

Speak to a Randburg-based unfair labour practice lawyer. If you have been subjected to an unfair labour practice — a denied promotion, an unfair written warning, a refusal to re-engage, or occupational detriment after whistle-blowing — contact Burger Huyser Attorneys’ Randburg head office on 011 888 0246 (after-hours 061 516 6878) or visit 49 First Avenue, Linden, Randburg, 2195. The firm runs unfair labour practice files under specialist consultant Marius Ferreira, with the Randburg office handling intake and any necessary Labour Court review. The firm carries a 4.8/5 average across 250+ Google reviews (Trustindex verified).