Employment of Children and Forced Labour No under the age of 15 may be employed and no child under the minimum school-leaving age in terms of any law, if this is 15 or older, may be employed. A child must not do work that is inappropriate for their age, or that places their well-being, education, physical or mental health and spiritual, moral or social development at risk. The onus is on the employer to prove that he or she investigated and found that the child was old enough to be an employee. All forced labour is prohibited. If an employer is found guilty of these offences, they can sentenced to up to three years’ imprisonment. Are Sectoral Determinations? [What A sectoral determination is a set of labour laws that apply only to a particular employment sector (e.g. mining and domestic work are governed by special labour laws). The State has the right to make various employment conditions valid for certain sectors only, but it must make its intention to do so public and it must undertake a thorough investigation before doing so. After investigating and making a sectoral determination, basic conditions such as remuneration, hours of work, minimum standards, training, travelling and other allowances will be set and will apply to all or some of the employees in that employment sector. If it applies, every employer must keep a copy of this sectoral determination and make it available for inspection by an employee. Making Employers Obey the Law Every employee has the right to: Lodge a complaint with a labour inspector or trade union Discuss their contract of employment with another person Refuse to comply with any instruction that is contrary to the Act, or that is included in contract that is not compliant with the Act Inspect any record relating to employment Request a trade union representative or labour inspector to inspect any record These rights are protected, and no one may prevent an employee, including a former employee, from lodging any complaint. And no person may prejudice an employee because of any action taken in terms of the Act. How Do Labour Inspectors Help? The State may appoint a number of labour inspectors to help monitor and enforce Compliance the basic conditions of employment and the various sectoral determinations. Labour Orders
Employment of Children and Forced Labour No under the age of 15 may be employed and no child under the minimum school-leaving age in terms of any law, if this is 15 or older, may be employed. A child must not do work that is inappropriate for their age, or that places their well-being, education, physical or mental health and spiritual, moral or social development at risk. The onus is on the employer to prove that he or she investigated and found that the child was old enough to be an employee. All forced labour is prohibited. If an employer is found guilty of these offences, they can sentenced to up to three years’ imprisonment. [What Are Sectoral Determinations? A sectoral determination is a set of labour laws that apply only to a particular employment sector (e.g. mining and domestic work are governed by special labour laws). The State has the right to make various employment conditions valid for certain sectors only, but it must make its intention to do so public and it must undertake a thorough investigation before doing so. After investigating and making a sectoral determination, basic conditions such as remuneration, hours of work, minimum standards, training, travelling and other allowances will be set and will apply to all or some of the employees in that employment sector. If it applies, every employer must keep a copy of this sectoral determination and make it available for inspection by an employee. Making Employers Obey the Law Every employee has the right to: Lodge a complaint with a labour inspector or trade union Discuss their contract of employment with another person Refuse to comply with any instruction that is contrary to the Act, or that is included in contract that is not compliant with the Act Inspect any record relating to employment Request a trade union representative or labour inspector to inspect any record These rights are protected, and no one may prevent an employee, including a former employee, from lodging any complaint. And no person may prejudice an employee because of any action taken in terms of the Act. How Do Labour Inspectors Help? The State may appoint a number of labour inspectors to help monitor and enforce the basic conditions of employment and the various sectoral determinations. Labour Compliance Orders