Colgate-Palmolive (Pty) Ltd v Rala-Rala and Others (JR79/19) [2021] ZALCJHB 35 (20 January 2021)

Colgate-Palmolive (Pty) Ltd v Rala-Rala and Others (JR79/19) [2021] ZALCJHB 35 (20 January 2021)

The court held that section 187(1)(c) of the LRA, as amended, is intended to protect collective bargaining and does not apply to individual dismissals. The first respondent was dismissed for misconduct following a disciplinary hearing, and the NBCCI has jurisdiction to arbitrate the dispute under section 191(5) of the LRA. The applicant's reliance on section 187(1)(c) was misplaced and constituted a strategy to delay the proceedings. The arbitrator correctly identified the real nature of the dispute, and there was no just and equitable reason for the Labour Court to entertain a review of the jurisdictional ruling prior to final determination. The review application was found to be...

Citation
[2021] ZALCJHB 35
Parties
Applicant: Colgate-Palmolive (Pty) Ltd; Respondent: Thamsanqa Andile Rala-Rala; Respondent: National Bargaining Council for the Chemical Industry; Respondent: Nozibusiso Faith Gumede N.O.
Court
Labour Court Johannesburg
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
20 January 2021
Case Number
JR79/19
Procedural Posture
Review Application / Jurisdictional Review of Arbitration Ruling Prior to Final Determination of Unfair Dismissal Dispute.
Outcome
Review application dismissed with punitive costs awarded against the applicant.
Judges
P Nkutha-Nkontwana
Legal Topics
Automatically Unfair Dismissal, Jurisdiction of Bargaining Council, Section 187 1 C Lra, Section 158 1b Lra, Unfair Dismissal for Misconduct
Labour Law Civil Procedure Automatically Unfair Dismissal Jurisdiction of Bargaining Council Section 187 1 C Lra Section 158 1b Lra Unfair Dismissal for Misconduct

Case Brief

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Parties

Colgate-Palmolive (Pty) Ltd

Applicant

Thamsanqa Andile Rala-Rala

Respondent

National Bargaining Council for the Chemical Industry

Respondent

Nozibusiso Faith Gumede N.O.

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Review Application / Jurisdictional Review of Arbitration Ruling Prior to Final Determination of Unfair Dismissal Dispute.

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the National Bargaining Council for the Chemical Industry has jurisdiction to arbitrate the unfair dismissal dispute.
  2. 2 Whether the applicant's dismissal of the first respondent constitutes an automatically unfair dismissal under section 187(1)(c) of the LRA.
  3. 3 Whether it is just and equitable for the Labour Court to entertain a review of the jurisdictional ruling prior to final determination of the dispute.

Ratio Decidendi

The court held that section 187(1)(c) of the LRA, as amended, is intended to protect collective bargaining and does not apply to individual dismissals. The first respondent was dismissed for misconduct following a disciplinary hearing, and the NBCCI has jurisdiction to arbitrate the dispute under section 191(5) of the LRA. The applicant's reliance on section 187(1)(c) was misplaced and constituted a strategy to delay the proceedings. The arbitrator correctly identified the real nature of the dispute, and there was no just and equitable reason for the Labour Court to entertain a review of the jurisdictional ruling prior to final determination. The review application was found to be...

Court Disposition

Review application dismissed with punitive costs awarded against the applicant.

Orders

  • The review application is dismissed.
  • The third respondent, NBCCI, is directed to urgently set down the pending arbitration proceedings.