Introduction
On 4 March 2025, the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (“MLVT“) issued the new Prakas No. 073/25 on the Procedures for the Resolution of Individual Labour Disputes (“Prakas 073“) to set out new procedures governing individual dispute resolution.
Prakas 073 abrogated Prakas No. 318 dated 29 November 2001 on the Procedures for the Resolution of Individual Disputes and any provisions that are in contradiction with Prakas 073.
Key Features
In this Update, we highlight some of the key features of Prakas 073.
Complaint
A complaint pertaining to an individual labour dispute may be filed with the labour inspector for the purpose of conciliation. The complaint may be submitted either to the Department of Labour Dispute or a Municipal/Provincial Department of Labour and Vocational Training.
Upon receiving the complaint, the labour inspector will review it and determine the appropriate course of action, either proceeding with conciliation or conducting a labour inspection.
Discovery process
The labour inspector will invite the parties to provide relevant information and documents relating to the dispute, which will serve as the basis for the conciliation proceedings.
Each party will be questioned separately, with minutes recorded and signed by the labour inspector, and signed or fingerprinted by the party. A copy of the minutes will be provided to the party being questioned.
Should the claimant or their representative fail to provide the required information by the specified date, or within three working days after the specified date without a valid reason, the complaint will be considered null and void. If the respondent or their representative fails to appear by the specified date, or within three working days after the specified date without a valid reason, the conciliation will be deemed unsuccessful, and the respondent will be presumed guilty pursuant to the complaint.
Conciliation meeting
The labour inspector shall initiate conciliation within three weeks at the latest upon the receipt of the complaint. Additionally, the labour inspector will invite the parties to attend conciliation meetings once sufficient information has been received.
The labour inspector must record the minutes of all the conciliation meetings by clearly noting agreements and disagreements lodged by the parties. The minutes must be signed by the labour inspector and affixed with the signature or fingerprint of the parties. A copy of the minutes shall be provided to the parties.
Any agreement made before the labour inspector shall be legally binding.
Should the claimant or their representative fail to appear without a valid reason, or fail to sign or fingerprint the minutes, the complaint will be considered null and void. If the respondent or their representative fails to appear without a valid reason, the conciliation will be deemed unsuccessful, and the respondent will be presumed guilty pursuant to the complaint.
A complaint deemed null and void as stated above will no longer be admitted for conciliation.
Dispute resolution following initial conciliation
- Reconciliation
If the initial conciliation fails, parties may engage in the reconciliation process as follows:
- Within two working days after the failure of the conciliation, the parties may jointly submit a written request for reconciliation to MLVT.
- If this reconciliation fails, the parties cannot request another reconciliation, and the next stage of the labour dispute resolution shall be carried out.
- Court filing and referral to the Arbitration Council
Within two months of an unsuccessful conciliation, the parties may file a complaint with a competent court for the resolution of the dispute. However, if the parties make a request during the conciliation proceeding, the labour inspector must report to the Minister of MLVT within two working days to take further action at the Arbitration Council within three working days.
If you have any queries on the above, please feel free to contact our team members who will be happy to assist.
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