Sidonselwa Iholo Ngokungemthetho. “No Work, No Pay”: Lawful Deductions or Employer’s Self-Help? In Search of Practical Guidelines

Abstract

The employment relationship is reciprocal in nature in that it entails obligations for both parties. The employee has an obligation to work, and the employer has a duty to pay remuneration. If the employee does not render services for various reasons, the employer is entitled to withhold remuneration. Moreover, there are cases where the employer overpays what is due to an employee and is entitled to recoup the overpayments. The question is how to go about this within the parameters of the law. This article discusses the common-law principle of “no work, no pay”, the legislative protections against arbitrary deductions from employees’ remuneration, and how the courts have interpreted these. The discussion shows that there is much misunderstanding and uncertainty among both employers and employees on how the issue of deductions must be handled, fuelling exasperation for both parties. Fortunately, the pronouncements of the courts have given us certain principles to work with when considering the issue of deductions from employee remuneration.