Inside this issue...

-    Labour Bulletin’s four-headed eagle
-    What is the “one week per year of service” based on?

Dear reader,

This is the fourth week of introductions! For those of you who haven’t encountered me before, I’m the managing editor of Labour Watch Newsletter. I would say the Labour Bulletin’s panel has become a four-headed eagle, if it weren’t for the bizarre imagery such a statement conjures...

But, you do appreciate the sentiment: four people bringing you labour and HR advice from four different pools of resources. That has to be a good thing.

I received a question from a customer this week about retrenchment. Now, I know we’re probably all heartily tired of the subject, but there’s no time like the present (and our current employment crisis) to brush up on your retrenchment rules and regulations.

Lucelle Buchler very kindly tackled the question...in question...from Martin Gishen.

What is the “one week per year of service” based on?

Question

Is the “one week per year of service” basic retrenchment package based on the employee’s latest earnings, or average, or does it apply to an employee whose salary is a percentage of his monthly debits?

Answer

If you calculate an employee’s pay on a basis other than time, or it fluctuates significantly from period to period, you must use the amount he earned in the preceding 13 weeks (take an average to get the sum for one week) (Section 35, BCEA).

Remember, severance pay includes the cash value of any payment in kind that forms part of his salary but excludes gratuities, allowances enabling him to work, and any discretionary payments not related to his hours of work or performance.

Until next time,

Nadia Pisanti
Managing editor: Labour Watch Newsletter