On 1 May 2020 Consolidated Employers Organisation received a communication from the CCMA advising that all matters scheduled to be heard in the week 4-8 May will not proceed and will be rescheduled. The complete advisory notice can be viewed here.

 

“Matters initially scheduled for the week of 4 – 8 May 2020, had to be rescheduled due to the regulations gazetted on 29 April 2020 for the effecting of lockdown level 4, which do not declare the CCMA an essential or related service, and which do not make clear provision for the re-opening of the CCMA and its services. The regulations also do not provide for users or stakeholders to access CCMA offices. At this stage, gazetted regulations only allow users and stakeholders to go to work and access services declared as essential and related services.”

 

CEO, therefore, advises that regardless of whether you receive a notice of cancellation or not, if you have a dispute scheduled at the CCMA for the week 4-8 May, the matter will not proceed and you will not be permitted to enter the CCMA premises.

 

The communication further states that pre-conciliations and conciliation processes may proceed telephonically with prior consent of both parties. In this regard, you may receive a call from a CCMA commissioner requesting that parties consent to telephonic conciliation. We advise that these processes are non-compulsory, and employers are not required to participate in the conciliation process. In such an event a certificate of non-resolution will be issued to parties who may refer the dispute to arbitration.

 

The primary objective of the CCMA is to resolve disputes between the employer and the employee while balancing the interests of both parties. CEO’s primary objective is to resolve disputes in the best interests of our members, and although these objectives partially overlap, we are of the opinion that the CCMA may apply pressure upon employers to resolve disputes notwithstanding the merits of the dispute. We, therefore, urge our members not to engage with the CCMA commissioner without consulting your regional CEO manager. A list of direct contact numbers is attached below.

 

At this time, we await further information regarding the status of the CCMA face-to-face proceeding from 11 May 2020 and will advise our members in due course.

 

Furthermore, we await the status of the various Bargaining Council’s dispute resolution departments as to their status, but we are of the opinion that they will follow the provisions of the CCMA directive.

 

REGIONAL MANAGEMENT CONTACT DETAILS:

Erenst Du Toit (Gauteng): 082 538 6743

Claire Turner (KZN): 083 357 42 62

Stephen Kirsten (Western Cape): 083 657 4646

Jaundré Kruger (Bloemfontein and Northern Cape): 082 290 8836

Daniel van Der Merwe (Eastern and Southern Cape): 083 716 6651