Dr AB Xuma Local Municipality v Delihlazo and Others

The Dr AB Xuma Local Municipality suspended several of its employees (the respondents) on 12 August 2024. The respondents approached the High Court seeking a declaratory order that the notices of suspension were unlawful, unconstitutional and/or null and void on the basis that they did not comply with clause 16 of an applicable collective agreement concluded in the bargaining council. The High Court upheld the challenge and declared the suspensions unlawful. The municipality then applied for leave to appeal that judgment, contending inter alia that it was no longer legally required to afford employees a pre-suspension hearing and that any dispute should have been pursued under the Labour Relations Act (LRA).

The application for leave to appeal was dismissed with costs.

The judgment reinforces the principle that organs of state acting as employers are bound by collective agreements with statutory force and must comply strictly with their provisions. It confirms that non-compliance renders decisions unlawful under the principle of legality, independently of unfair labour practice remedies under the LRA. The case also affirms the heightened threshold for leave to appeal under section 17 of the Superior Courts Act and the duty of courts to decide disputes as pleaded.