Unilever Field Services (a division of Smollan Group Ltd) v Shibambu and Others

The CCMA issued an arbitration award on 20 November 2012 finding the dismissal of the first respondent substantively unfair and ordering reinstatement with backpay and a final written warning. The applicant employer launched a review application on 9 January 2013. The arbitration record was dispatched by the CCMA on 31 January 2013, but difficulties arose in uplifting and transcribing the record, which was incomplete. Over several years, the applicant failed to timeously file a complete record and prosecute the review. The Practice Manual of the Labour Court came into operation in April 2013. Despite relying on the Practice Manual to seek directions from the Judge President, the applicant did not comply with its timelines. The review application remained dormant for extended periods, was archived in terms of the Practice Manual, and was eventually set down many years later without an application for reinstatement.

The review application was deemed to have been withdrawn. No order as to costs was made.

The case reaffirms the binding nature of the Labour Court Practice Manual and underscores the obligation on litigants to prosecute review applications expeditiously. It highlights that failure to comply with Practice Manual timelines results in review applications being archived and deemed withdrawn, depriving the Labour Court of jurisdiction unless reinstatement is sought.