The Lion Match Company Limited v Paper Printing Wood & Allied Workers Union and Others

The appellant employer dismissed 217 employees following a continued work stoppage in August 1996. The first respondent union, recognised under the Labour Relations Act 28 of 1956, applied to the Regional Director for the establishment of a conciliation board to resolve an alleged unfair dismissal dispute. A conciliation board was duly established and met but failed to resolve the dispute. The union and employees then referred the matter to the Industrial Court under s 46(9) of the Act. Only after participating in the conciliation process and after the Industrial Court proceedings had commenced did the employer challenge the validity of the conciliation board application, alleging non-compliance with s 35(2)(b) of the Act and breaches of the union’s constitution. The High Court dismissed the employer’s declaratory application, leading to the appeal.

The appeal was dismissed with costs.

The case affirms the principle in South African administrative and labour law that challenges to administrative or quasi-administrative processes must be brought within a reasonable time. It underscores that parties cannot participate in statutory dispute-resolution mechanisms and only challenge their validity once the outcome is unfavourable. The judgment reinforces the application of review-delay principles in labour disputes under the pre-1995 Labour Relations Act.