Strategic Liquor Services v Mvumbi NO and Others

The applicant employer employed Mr Wesley Redgard from October 2003 to February 2004. After a major client complained about him, the employer’s manager gave Mr Redgard a choice between resigning with a month’s salary and a good reference, or remaining subject to a warning and a poor performance programme. Believing that management was against him and that dismissal was inevitable, Mr Redgard resigned and subsequently referred a dispute to the CCMA. The CCMA, relying solely on Mr Redgard’s uncontested evidence (as the employer’s manager did not testify under oath), found that he had been constructively dismissed and awarded him compensation equivalent to ten months’ salary. The employer unsuccessfully sought review in the Labour Court, leave to appeal in the Labour Appeal Court, and special leave to appeal in the Supreme Court of Appeal, before applying to the Constitutional Court.

The application for leave to appeal was dismissed with costs.

The case is significant for reaffirming the statutory and jurisprudential test for constructive dismissal under the Labour Relations Act, clarifying that an employee need not prove absolute lack of choice, only intolerability of continued employment. It also contains strong Constitutional Court commentary on systemic delays in labour litigation and the constitutional importance of providing written reasons, reinforcing judicial accountability and the right of access to courts.