Buying Selling or Transferring a Business - Labour Law Considerations | SECTION 197 of the LRA

Are you buying, selling or transferring a business as a going concern? Or have recently bought, sold or transferred a business - you will want to watch this video. This video will also be of value to HR managers/practitioners, Industrial Relations or Labour Relations consultants, students of labour relations, union officials / shop stewards and employees who are amidst a transfer and would like to understand what needs to happen.
In this video I take you through Section 197 of the Labour Relations Act (Transfer of contract of employment) and how this legislation is applied in practice. I discuss common mistakes or noncompliance, practical tips to avoid these common labour relations mistakes, as well as where the labour law differs from what commonly happens in practice. I discuss the definition of dismissal (Section 186 of the LRA) as it relates to a sale / transfer of a business as a going concern, as well as the very important automatically unfair dismissal (Section 187 of the LRA) that relates to a transfer of a business.
I take you through how to conclude the transfer agreement envisaged by the Act and finally I end with a brief discussion on how you can fairly alter the terms and conditions of employment.
In between all that you will find explanations on organisational rights, collective agreements and more.
Website to download the transfer agreement:
fourieemploymentrelations.com...
Employment Relations Website: www.employmentrelations.co.za/
My Credentials:
Employment Relations practitioner for over 5 years, assisted over 450 clients in various industries across South Africa, over 2000 disciplinary hearings chaired, numerous CCMA cases, retrenchments, restructuring, contracts of employment, incapacity investigations, grievances facilitated, and negotiations.
I am also the Director of Fourie Employment Relations (Pty) Ltd and, lectured and mentored the subject of labour relations at the University of Stellenbosch.
MCom Cum Laude (Industrial Psychology)
BCom Hons Cum Laude (Industrial Psychology)
BCom Management Science (Entrepreneurship & Industrial Psychology)
Numerous courses completed on Nonviolent Communication
Time codes:
0:00 - Introduction
1:05 - Setting the scene
3:11 - Disclaimer
3:51 - Section 197(2)(a)
7:55 - Section 197(2)(b)
8:44 - Dismissal
9:48 - Automatically unfair dismissal
11:28 - Section 197(2)(c)
12:01 - Section 197(2)(d)
13:05 - Why is length of service important
13:23 - Section 197(3)
15:25 - Collective Agreements
16:09 - Union subscription deductions
16:54 - Transfer agreement
20:04 - What goes in the agreement
20:38 - Leave
22:40 - Payments due
23:20 - Severance pay
24:57 - Why have the agreement
25:55 - How to fairly change terms and conditions of employment
Disclaimer: This video is for educational purposes only. When in doubt always contact a professional to assist you with your specific situation.

[@suefourie]

This is very interesting, thank you Carmen. Having been on the 'receiving side' of such a transaction, when the #SABMiller business was sold to #ABInBev (and #Asahi), the professionalism with which such knowledge of impact on employee contracts is considered, was key. Although your videos are for #SMEs (small and medium sized businesses) in South Africa, the approaches in general have some universal considerations which are helpful not only to SME business owners, but to HR practitioners in general, to employees who are interested in understanding more about their changing worlds when businesses are sold or transferred, and key to compensation, benefits, rewards and overall talent management approaches.

[@carmenfourie5346]

Thank you for your comment. It is wonderful to hear that the information shared can be applied to a broader context than I initially realized and can (hopefully) offer some value to HR practitioners and maybe even to those who specifically work in mergers and acquisitions.

[@joubertmotingoe2660]

He must change the payment