Efficient Engineering (Pty) Ltd v Metal And Engineering Industries and Others (JR1019/14) [2015] ZALCJHB 58 (3 February 2015)

Efficient Engineering (Pty) Ltd v Metal And Engineering Industries and Others (JR1019/14) [2015] ZALCJHB 58 (3 February 2015)

The court held that the applicant failed to establish any of the grounds for review under section 145 of the Labour Relations Act. The Commissioner’s findings regarding consistency in discipline and the nature of the misconduct were not so unreasonable that no other arbitrator could have reached the same conclusion. The disciplinary code was correctly treated as a guideline, and the Commissioner reasonably distinguished between the previous warning and the current misconduct. The award was therefore not open to review, and the application was dismissed.

Citation
[2015] ZALCJHB 58
Parties
Applicant: Efficient Engineering (Pty) Ltd; Respondent: Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council; Respondent: Commissioner N.P. Mbekwa; Respondent: UCIMESHAWU Obo Johannes Moichela
Court
Labour Court Johannesburg
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
3 February 2015
Case Number
JR1019/14
Procedural Posture
Review Application / Judgment
Outcome
Application for review dismissed.
Judges
Steenkamp
Legal Topics
Review of Arbitration Award, Unfair Dismissal, Consistency in Discipline, Procedural Irregularity, Labour Relations Act, Reasonable Outcome Test
Labour Law Review of Arbitration Award Unfair Dismissal Consistency in Discipline Procedural Irregularity Labour Relations Act Reasonable Outcome Test

Case Brief

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Parties

Efficient Engineering (Pty) Ltd

Applicant

Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council

Respondent

Commissioner N.P. Mbekwa

Respondent

UCIMESHAWU Obo Johannes Moichela

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Review Application / Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the arbitration award finding the dismissal of Mr Moichela unfair is reviewable under section 145 of the Labour Relations Act.
  2. 2 Whether the Commissioner committed misconduct, a gross irregularity, exceeded her powers, or the award was improperly obtained.
  3. 3 Whether the Commissioner was unreasonable in her findings regarding consistency in discipline and the nature of the misconduct.

Ratio Decidendi

The court held that the applicant failed to establish any of the grounds for review under section 145 of the Labour Relations Act. The Commissioner’s findings regarding consistency in discipline and the nature of the misconduct were not so unreasonable that no other arbitrator could have reached the same conclusion. The disciplinary code was correctly treated as a guideline, and the Commissioner reasonably distinguished between the previous warning and the current misconduct. The award was therefore not open to review, and the application was dismissed.

Court Disposition

Application for review dismissed.

Orders

  • The application for review is dismissed.