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Dismissing During Probation: More Latitude, Not a Free Pass
⚡ Quick answer Dismissal during probation is permitted with more latitude than after confirmation — but it is never process-free. The Code of Good Practice requires: a reasonable probation period agreed upfront, ongoing evaluation against clear standards, guidance and training where the employee falls short, a reasonable opportunity to improve, and a process where the employee can respond before the decision. Probationers are protected against unfair dismissal from day one, and against automatically unfair reasons (pregnancy, union membership) completely. ‘It is probation, I can just let them go’ is the most expensive sentence in small-business HR. Probation exists so employers can assess a new hire with some protection — and…
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7 Employment Contract Mistakes That Cost Employers at the CCMA
⚡ Quick answer The employment contract mistakes that cost South African employers most are: no written contract at all, copied foreign templates, missing BCEA section 29 particulars, unlawful deduction clauses, notice periods below the BCEA minimums, restraint clauses that are too wide to enforce, and unsigned or outdated contracts. Every one of these surfaces at the worst moment — a dismissal dispute, a resignation battle, a Department inspection — when fixing it is no longer possible. At the CCMA, the contract is exhibit one — and it is remarkable how often it loses the case before the evidence starts. These are the employment contract mistakes commissioners and inspectors see every…
