It is a non-binding recommendation often made by a commissioner or a Judge to assist the parties in the dispute to interpret or apply a workplace principle or legal question correctly. 

Agency Shop

A collective agreement signed by an employer and representative trade union where the employer can deduct a fee, known as an agency fees from the wages/salaries of employees identified in the agreement that are not members of the trade union but are eligible for membership to contribute to the costs of the trade union.

Arbitration

A dispute resolution procedure where an impartial third party listens to the case put forward by the parties, determines the matter and once the matter is determined, the dispute is resolved; usually the arbitrator’s finding is final and binding.

Bargain

It is when two opposing parties being in a position of equal status places demands on the negotiation table, and the other party responds by making counter-demands, here the parties make proposals, compromises, and negotiate and by doing this they try to place pressure on each other to give in to their demand. Bargaining has fails if either of the parties declares a dispute.  

Bargaining Unit

A ring-fenced group of employees, recognised by the employer, and identified in a recognition agreement, on whose behalf the trade union as the collective bargaining agent negotiates collectively.

Branch Representative

An employee elected by members in terms of the Union's Constitution and the Recognition Agreement to perform the duties set out in the Constitution or Agreement.

Caucus

In collective bargaining, when either party requests a break from the at-the-table negotiations with the other party, for the purposes of discussing matters  on the negotiated subject matter without the other party’s bargaining team being present.

CCMA

The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration, a dispute resolution form established in terms of Section 112 of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995.

Check-off Facilities

A provision, generally found in the collective bargaining agreement or recognition agreement, that allows union fees to be deducted from the pay of union members, usually on a monthly basis.  The employer then transfers the payments to the union on a scheduled basis.

Closed-Shop Agreement

A collective agreement requiring all employees covered by the Agreement to be or become members of a specified trade union, which becomes a condition of service. The Labour Relations Act prohibits pre-entry closed shopswhere an employeehas to be a union member before he or she can enter into the service ofan employer or engaging a relevant employee unless he is already a member of that union.  A post-entry agreementrequires employees to join a specified union within a certain time after the employee’s employment commences.

Collective Agreement

A written agreement concerning terms and conditions of employment or any other matter of mutual interest concluded by Sasbo and an employer.

Collective Bargaining

Is a process whereby employers bargain with employee representatives about terms and conditions of employment or other matters of mutual interest, e.g., wages, hours of work, etc, collective bargaining is successful if an employer and the employee representative (trade union) meet at reasonable times, confer and negotiate in good faith, and conclude a written agreement.

Collective Bargaining Agreement

A document containing the outcome of negotiations between the parties; it is a written instrument setting forth the terms and conditions of employment, grievance resolution procedures, and any other conditions resulting from collective bargaining.  The terms of a collective bargaining agreement must be reduced to writing and those terms may not be changed unilaterally by either party.

Conciliation

It is process where a conciliator is appointed to help the parties to a dispute to reach a settlement, and this can by done by any consensus-building process, including mediation, by fact finding or by making recommendations, including an advisory award.

Constituency

A branch, department or region which has a Union representative.

Constitution

A body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which an organisation is governed.

Cost to Company

Cost to Company refers to the total employment cost that an organisation is spending on an employee, including salary, benefits, pension and medical insurance contributions.

Counterproposal

An offer made by either party in collective bargaining negotiations in response to a proposal by the other party. 

Dispute

Stalemate or deadlock in collective bargaining between management and labour representatives; a point at which either or both parties to negotiations determine that no further progress toward settlement can be made through direct negotiation.

Employee

A person who works for another person or organisation and is entitled to receive remuneration therefore or any other person who in any manner assists in carrying on or conducting the business of an employer.

Employment relationship stages

Any employment relationship has 3 stages, the appointment, the relationship or middle and the end (can be terminated due to misconduct, incapacity, operational requirements, resignation, retirement or even death). The unfair conduct by the employer appointment 

External Parity

The rewarding of employee in line with the external financial market

General Secretary

Usually the head of a trade who is responsible for planning, managing directing and controlling the administration, finances and business operation of the Union.

Good faith bargaining

The requirement that an employer and trade union meet at reasonable times to negotiate, with an intent to reach an agreement, with respect to wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment.  Good faith bargaining is determined based upon a ‘‘totality of conduct’’ and has traditionally been interpreted not to require an employer or union to agree to a proposal or to make a concession, it simply means that each party must maintain an open mind and a willingness to be persuaded by the other party.

Grievance

An actual or supposed dissatisfaction experienced by the employee/s that gives rise to a legitimate complaint in the workplace.  

Grievance Procedure

The procedure, usually contained in a collective agreement consisting of basic principles and processes to guides employees in lodging a formal compliant against management or colleague in an attempt to solve the matter.  Unlike discipline, grievances operate from the lower work ranks to the upper work levels.

Grounds for strikes and lock outs

However a strike or lock-out may not be held if the Act provides that the dispute may be resolved by way of arbitration or adjudication. Some of the issues over which a strike or lock-out may be held are wage increases; a demand to establish or join a bargaining council; a demand to recognise a union as a collective bargaining agent; a demand for organisational rights; a demand to suspend or negotiate unilateral changes to working conditions; an unprotected lock-out or unprotected strike by the other party, an overtime ban initiated by employees and lately over retrenchments in certain circumstances.

Institutional National Council

The governing body responsible for the administration and control of union policy and procedures concerning the negotiations and all dealings with specific institutions.

Internal Parity

Parity in the immediate environment.  The fair and consistent rewarding of employees ensuring that employees of equal value and contribution are rewarded more or less equally.

Job Description

A description of the main tasks and responsibilities associated with a given job against the background of information such as expertise requirements and financial impacts

Job Evaluation

Is a tool commonly used by companies to objectively measure the level of responsibility of jobs and hence determine the relativity of pay between jobs

Labour Relations

The relationship or interaction between management and employees on the micro enterprise level and management, employees and trade unions on the macro enterprise level. 

Management's Rights

Certain rights that management maintains as fundamental to the ability to manage and operate the organisation.  They include the right to hire, promote, suspend or discharge employees; to direct the work of employees; and to establish operating policies.

Market Percentiles

Percentiles are a statistical instrument indicating the distribution of data. With reference to remuneration, the 20th percentile is that package amount where 20% of employees in the market on the applicable job band earns less and 80% earn more than this amount.

Matters of mutual interest

Whilst terms and conditions of employment relate to issues like remuneration, working hours and leave, matter of mutual interest are broader and can include issues like corporate wear, restructuring of the workplace or training and development of employees.

Mediation

A process in which a neutral third party assists parties in a dispute to come to a voluntary agreement by suggesting possible areas of compromise, bringing a different point of view, clarifying issues, and using other techniques designed to bring the parties closer together and narrow the disagreement.  The function of mediation is to assist the parties by being creative and innovative in finding areas of agreement and compromise to reach final resolution of the dispute.

Member

An employee of a financial institution who is a paid up member of the Union in terms of its Constitution.

National Executive Congress

A union’s primary governing body comprising of one delegate for every 1500 members or part thereof responsible for inter alia the formulation of union policies to promote the interests of its members.

Nedlac

National Economic, Development and Labour Council established in terms of s of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995 and represented by business, labour and the government.

Negotiation And Consultation Forum or NCF

An elected forum representing the members of that specific institution who meets with the employer of that institution for the purpose of collective bargaining, negotiations and/or consultation

Office Bearer

An employee elected by members to serve on the structures of Sasbo in terms of Union's Constitution.

Ordinary Hours Of Work

Means the hours of work permitted in terms of s 9 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 75 of 1997

Organisational rights

The rights that a registered trade union may have if the union the majority union in that workplace and has signed a recognition agreement with the employer.  The rights are The Act provides for the following organisational rights: trade union access to a workplace. This includes the right of unions to enter an employer’s premises to recruit or meet members; hold meetings with employees outside their working hours at the employer’s premises; and conduct elections or ballots among its members on union matters. The union may have stop-order facilities.  The union can elect trade union representatives at a workplace. The trade union representative can: assist and represent employees in grievance and disciplinary proceedings; monitor the employer’s compliance with labour laws, for example, sectoral determinations and health and safety regulations or any collective agreement, and report any contravention to the employer, union or any responsible authority; and perform any other function agreed to between the union and the employer. These representatives can be give time off for trade union activities during working hours. Union representatives are entitled to reasonable time off with pay during working hours to: perform their functions as union representatives; and receive training in the functions of union representatives. The union can claim the disclosure of information. rights

Organiser

A person employed by a union whose function it is to enlist/recruit the employees of a particular employer to join the union.

Overtime

Means the time that an employee works during a day or a week in excess of ordinary hours of work

Paid Official or Union Official

Is a full-time employee of Sasbo - the Finance Union

Past Practice

A consistent action or behaviour over time, such that employees, the union and the employer come to recognize the practice as the standard.  A past practice, however, cannot supersede clear contract language regarding the issue.  Past practice is used by arbitrators to interpret ambiguous contract language.

Pay ranges

The pay range refers to the width of the pay scale, i.e., the distance between minimum and maximum pay for each grade.  It is usually measured in terms of percentage above and below each midpoint.

Performance Appraisal

An evaluation process of how well an employee performs his or her job compared to a set of predetermined work standards or also known as Key Performance Indicators or Key Result Areas which are goals or targets set by an entity in their strategic plan.

Picketing

This is a concerted action by employees to peacefully encourage non-striking employees and members of the public to oppose a lock-out or to support strikers involved in a protected strike. The nature of that support can vary. It may be to encourage employees not to work during the strike or lock-out. It may be to dissuade replacement labour from working. It may also be to persuade members of the public or other employers and their employees not to do business with the employer. Usually picketers will block the entrances to a workplace to prevent other employees or the public to gain entrance to that workplace.

Recognised Trade Union

Refers to a trade union which has a signed recognition agreement with the employer and who is entitled to exercise the 5 organisational rights in that employer’s workplace

Recognition

The written acceptance by an employer of a trade union as the majority representative of employees in an appropriate unit.  Recognition is a major step in the establishment of a collective bargaining.

Retrenchment

A dismissal based on the operational requirements of an employer due to technological, economical, structural or similar needs.  Dismissals for operational requirements have been categorised as "no fault" dismissals.  Because retrenchment is a "no fault" dismissal and because of its human cost, the Act places particular obligations on an employer, directed toward ensuring that all possible alternatives to dismissal are explored and that the employees to be dismissed are treated fairly.

Standing Joint Committee Or SJC

An elected forum representing the members of that specific institution who meets with the employer of that institution for the purpose of collective bargaining, negotiations and/or consultation

Strike

Strikes (must involve two or more employees) may be held over disputes which relate to a matter of mutual interest between employees and their employer. The action can be a partial or complete refusal to work or the retardation or obstruction of work, for example: go-slows, work-to-rule, intermittent strike (where employees stop and start the same strike over a period of time) and overtime bans. The reason must be to solve a grievance or dispute about a matter of mutual interest that concerns employees and employers. (A dispute between two unions does not constitute a strike nor does a non-work-related grievance.)

Terms and Conditions of Employment

Generally speaking, it includes remuneration, hours, working conditions, leave and fringe benefits.

The Act

The Labour Relations Act, No 66 of 1995 as amended.

Total Package

The total value of reward expressed as the total benefit to the employee as well as cost to the employer.

Trade Union

A permanent organisation whose membership consists of workers and union leaders, and whose principal purposes are to safeguard and improve working conditions through collective bargaining and to take collective action to enforce their terms.

Trade Union Representative

An employee elected by members in terms of the Union's constitution and the Recognition Agreement between Sasbo and the employer, to perform the duties set out in the agreement.

Unfair Discrimination

It is to differentiate based on an unacceptable or prejudicial reason like the unfair or unequal treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice, e.g., unfairly discriminating based on race, creed, colour, sex, national origin, belief, opinion or other protected class.

Unfair Labour Practice

Any employment relationship has 3 stages, the appointment, the relationship or middle and the end (can be terminated due to misconduct, incapacity, operational requirements, resignation, retirement or even death). The unfair conduct by the employer at the time of the appointment normally takes the form of unfair discrimination, the unfair conduct of by the employer at the end of the employment relationship usually takes the form of unfair dismissal but any unfair conduct by the employer during the existence of the employment relations is seen as an unfair labour practice, like unfair promotion, unfair suspension, etc.

Union

Sasbo - The Finance Union, duly registered as such In terms of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995

Workplace

The premises where employees work.