Overtime is one of the most contentious issues in labour law, with many employers expecting their employees to be at their beck and call all hours of the day.
Many workers, meanwhile, resent being asked to work after hours, especially for reasons that are beyond their control.
The Basic Conditions of Employment Act sets out some clear, realistic laws governing overtime that all employers must heed. This legislation does a good job of balancing the rights of employees and the needs of businesses.
According to a determination from Minister of Labour Mildred Oliphant, all employees who earn less than R205 433.30 a year are entitled to be remunerated for overtime worked. In this case, earnings mean gross pay before deductions, but excluding the employer’s contributions to, for example, the worker’s retirement fund or medical insurance.
However, employers don’t have to remunerate all classes of employees when they put in overtime hours at your request. The following categories of employees are not entitled to overtime pay:
* Anyone earning more than R205 433.30 a year.
* Senior managers.
* Sales representatives who travel to customers’ premises and who regulate their own hours of work.
* Employees who work less than 24 hours a month for you.
However, if you have agreed to pay your employees overtime in your employment contract, then you must do so or else you’ll be in breach of contract.
You should pay employees at least 1.5 times their usual rate of pay. Alternatively, with the employee’s agreement, you can trade overtime for paid time off on another day.
Working on a public holiday is only with the employees’ agreement. If they are asked to work on a public holiday, remuneration should be paid at least double the rate. Time worked on a public holiday is exchangeable for other paid days off by mutual agreement instead of payment. It’s a good idea to write the rate of overtime pay or the agreement to trade overtime for paid leave into employment contracts.
Employers should not require – or even permit – employees to work more than three hours overtime a day or 10 hours overtime a week, according to SA labour law. The bottom line is that employers cannot usually force employees to work overtime unless there is an agreement to that effect.
The Basic Conditions of Employment Act does offer employers some leeway.
If
there is work that must be done without delay, which the team will not be able to complete in their usual hours of work, employers can oblige employees to put in the overtime. If they refuse, that could be grounds for disciplinary action.
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Madelein Taljaard van der Watt is the development manager at Sage HR & Payroll.
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