Unilever South Africa (Pty) Ltd v Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration and Others

In March 2017 Unilever retrenched employees working as packers and paid severance packages. From 1 April 2017 the same employees were offered fixed-term employment on flexible hours for a specific project, without benefits. Although the employees did not sign the written fixed-term contracts, they continued working under the terms of the written offers. In April 2018, the union referred a dispute to the CCMA alleging non-compliance with section 198B of the Labour Relations Act, seeking a declaration that the employees be deemed permanent. The CCMA commissioner found the employees to be permanently employed and ordered retrospective permanency, equal benefits, and back pay. Unilever brought review applications challenging both the main award and a later variation ruling.

The arbitration award and the subsequent variation ruling were reviewed and set aside. The application to stay the award was dismissed. No order as to costs was made.

The case clarifies the strict jurisdictional time limits applicable to section 198B disputes under section 198D of the LRA and confirms that such disputes are not automatically treated as continuing wrongs. It also affirms that CCMA commissioners lack jurisdiction to award compensatory or substantive relief under section 198B/198D where only declaratory relief is sought, reinforcing the limited and proactive nature of this statutory dispute-resolution mechanism.