Sample
of written particulars
Provided free of charge
by the Department of Labour
(DOMESTIC WORKER)
Given by:
_______________________________________
(herein after referred to as "the employer")
Address of employer:
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00000000000000000000000000
to
_______________________________________
(herein after
referred to as "the employee")
1. Commencement
Employment will begin on
000000000000000000 and continue until terminated as
set out in clause 6 of the guidelines.
2. Place of work
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3.
Job description
Job Title 000000000000000000000000000000000000000000.
(e.g..
Domestic worker, child minder, gardener, etc)
Duties: See attached
job description
4.
Hours of work (See
Guideline 5)
Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday
/ Thursday / Friday: 00000... am to 00.000.
pm
Meal intervals will be from: 00000000. to 000000000
Other breaks: 00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000/font>
Saturdays: 00000...
am to 00.000. pm
Meal intervals will be from: 00000000. to 000000000
Other breaks: 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Sundays: 00000...
am to 00.000. pm
Meal intervals will be from: 00000000. to 000000.00
Other breaks: 00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000/font>
4.3 Standby will only be done if agreed from time to time whereby an allowance will be paid of at least R20,00 per standby shift.
5.
Wage (See Guidelines
4 and 5)
R000000. 5.2 The employee shall be entitled to the following allowances/other cash payments/payment in kind: 5.2.1 A weekly/monthly transport allowance of R000000. 5.2.2
5.3
Accommodation per week/month to the value ofThe following deductions are
agreed upon:
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00000000000000000000000.
R000000.R000000..
R000000..
R000000..
5.4 The total value of the above remuneration shall be(The total of clauses 5.1 to 5.2.2)
(Modify or delete clauses 5.2.1 to 5.2.2 as needed)
R00000.00
5.5 The employer shall review
the employee00 salary/wage on or before 1 November of every year.
6.
Termination of employment
Either
party can terminate this agreement with one weeks notice during the
first six months of employment and with four weeks notice there after.
Notice must be given in writing except when it is given by an illiterate
domestic worker. In the case where the domestic worker is illiterate
notice must be explained orally by or on behalf of the employer.
Any work on Sundays will be by agreement between parties and will be paid according to clause 7 of the guidelines.
8.
Public Holidays
Any work
on holidays will be by agreement and will be paid according to clause
8 of the guidelines.
9. Annual
Leave
The employee
is entitled to three weeks paid leave after every 12 months of continuous
service. Such leave is to be taken at times convenient to the
employer and the employer may require the employee to take his/her leave
at such times as coincide with that of the employer.
10.
Sick leave
10.1 During
every sick leave cycle of 36 months the employee will be entitled to
an amount of paid sick leave equal to the number of days the employee
would normally work during a period of six weeks.
10.2 During
the first six months of employment the employee will entitled to one
day00 paid sick leave for every 26 days worked.
10.3 The
employee is to notify the employer as soon as possible in case of his/her
absence from work through illness.
10.4 A medical
certificate may be required if absent for more than 2 consecutive days
or has been absent on more than two occasions during an eight-week period.
11. Maternity leave
(Tick the applicable
clauses in the space provided).
13. Family
responsibility leave
The employee
will be entitled to five days family responsibility leave during each
leave cycle if he or she works on at least four days a week.
14. Accommodation
(Tick
the applicable boxes).
000000
sets of uniforms will be supplied to the employee free of charge by
the employer and will remain the property of the employer.
16. Other conditions of
employment or benefits
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000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000..00000000000/b>
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000..00000/b>
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000.000000000
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000.00000000000/b>
18.
General
Any changes to the written
particulars will only be valid if agreed to by both parties.
000000000000000000..
EMPLOYER
Acknowledgement of receipt
by employee:
000000000000000000..
Date: 000000000000000
JOB DESCRIPTION
Indicate functions required by a 4 in the appropriate block
Child minding / baby sitting 00/i> Laundry 00machine wash 00/i> Minding old/sick employer or relative 00/i> Laundry 00hand wash 00/i> General tidying of house 00/i> Hanging out of laundry 00/i> Making of beds 00/i> Washing of curtains 00/i> Vacuuming of carpets 00/i> Ironing 00/i> Vacuuming of upholstery 00/i> Small mending job, e.g. replacing buttons, hems, etc 00/i> Dusting 00/i> Defrosting and cleaning fridge & freezer 00/i> Wiping down of all appliances e.g. T.V etc 00/i> Cleaning of windows and glass doors inside and out 00/i> Cleaning of walls, light switches, doors etc 00/i> Cleaning of all used equipment e.g. vacuum cleaner 00/i> Cleaning of ornaments 00/i> Packing away of groceries 00/i> Cleaning of toilets, basins, baths, showers, taps etc. 00/i> Removal of refuse for collection 00/i> Mopping of tiled/vinyl floors 00/i> Sweeping of outside patios, steps, etc 00/i> Cleaning of inside of cupboards 00/i> Wiping down of outside lights 00/i> Cleaning of stove and oven 00/i> Cleaning of outside room00 and cloakroom 00/i> Preparation/cooking of breakfast 00/i> General driving duties and errands 00/i> Preparation/cooking of lunch 00/i> Wash cars 00/i> Preparation/cooking of supper 00/i> Maintain garden in clean and tidy condition 00/i> Setting of table 00/i> Caring for pool 00/i> Cleaning away after breakfast/lunch/supper 00/i> Mow lawns 00/i> Polishing of floors and verandas 00/i> Weeding 00/i> Cleaning brass and silver 00/i> Trimming and pruning 00/i> Washing of Walls 00/i> Washing and grooming of dogs 00/i> Other00000000000000000000 00/i> Painting of walls 00/i> 00000000000000000000000 00/i> 000000000000000000000000.. 00/i>
GUIDELINES
Notice period and termination of employmentIn terms of
the Sectoral Determination, any party to an employment contract must
give written notice, except when an illiterate domestic worker gives
it, as follows:
Notice must
be explained orally by or on behalf of the employer to a domestic worker
if he/she is not able to understand it.
The employer
is required to provide the domestic worker who resides in accommodation
that is situated on the premises of the employer or that is supplied
by the employer, with accommodation for a period of one month, or if
it is a longer period, until the contract of employment could lawfully
have been terminated.
All monies due to the domestic worker for any wages, allowance or other payments that have not been paid, paid time-off not taken and pro-rata leave must be paid.
Procedure for termination of employmentWhilst the
contract of employment makes provision for termination of employment,
it must be understood that the services of an employee may not be terminated
unless a valid and fair reason exists and fair procedure is followed.
If an employee is dismissed without a valid reason or without a fair
procedure, the employee may approach the CCMA for assistance.
Pro-rata leave
and severance pay might be payable.
In the event
of a domestic worker being unable to return to work due to disability,
the employer must investigate the nature of the disability and ascertain
whether or not it is permanent or temporary. The employer must
try to accommodate the employee as far as possible for example, amending
or adapting their duties to suit the disability. However, in the
event of it not being possible for the employer to adapt the domestic
workers duties and/or to find alternatives, then such employer may terminate
the services of the domestic worker.
The Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995 sets out the procedures to be followed at the termination of services in the Code of Good Practice, in Schedule 8.
Wage/Remuneration/PaymentThere is a prescribed minimum rate of remuneration. Additional payments (such as for overtime or work on Sundays or Public Holidays) are calculated from the total remuneration as indicated in clause 5.3 of the contract. The total remuneration is the total of the money received by the employee and the payment in kind, which may not be more than 10% of the wage for accommodation.
Transport allowancesSectoral Determination 7: Domestic Sector, South Africa does not regulate this and is therefore open to negotiation between the parties.
Hours of work
5.1 Normal
hours (excluding overtime)
A domestic worker may not be made to:
work more than 45 hours a week; work more than nine hours per day for a five day work week; work more than eight hours a day for a six day work week; and 5.2 OvertimeA domestic
worker may not work more than 15 hours overtime per week but may not
work more than 12 hours on any day, including overtime.
Overtime must
be paid at 1.5 times the employee00 normal wage or an employee may
agree to receive paid time off.
5.3 Daily and
weekly rest periods
5.3.1 A
daily rest period of 12 consecutive hours and a weekly rest period of
36 consecutive hours, which must include Sunday, unless otherwise agreed,
must be allowed.
5.3.2 The
daily rest period may by agreement be reduced to 10 hours for an employee
who live on the premises whose meal interval lasts for at least three
hours.
5.3.3 The
weekly rest period may by agreement be extended to 60 consecutive hours
every two weeks or be reduced to eight hours in any week if the rest
period in the following week is extended equivalently.
5.4 Standby
5.4.1 Standby
means any period between 20:00 and 06:00 the next day when a domestic
worker is required to be at the workplace and is permitted to rest or
sleep but must be available to work if necessary.
5.4.2 May
only done if it is agreed in writing and on not more than five times
per month must be compensated by the payment of an allowance of at least
R20,00 per shift.
5.5 Night
work 00after 18:00 and before 06:00
5.5.1 Worked only if agreed to in writing and must be compensated by an allowance and if the domestic resides at the workplace or transport is available.
Meal intervalsA domestic worker is entitled to a one-hour break for a meal after not more than five hours work. Such interval may be reduced to 30 minutes, by agreement between the parties. When a second meal interval is required because of overtime worked, it may be reduced to not less than 15 minutes. If required or permitted to work during this period, remuneration must be paid.
Sunday workWork on Sundays
is voluntary and a domestic worker can therefore not be forced to work
on a Sunday.
If the employee works on a Sunday he/she shall be paid double the daily wage.
If the employee ordinarily works on a Sunday he/she shall be paid one and one-half time the wage for every hour worked. Paid time off in return for working on a Sunday may be agreed upon.
8. Public HolidaysThe days mentioned
in the Public Holidays Act must be granted but the parties can agree
to further public holidays. Work on a public holiday is entirely voluntary
and a domestic worker may not be forced to work on such public holiday.
The official
public holidays are:
New Years Day Youth Day
Human Rights Day National Woman00 Day
Good Friday Heritage Day
Family Day Day of Reconciliation
Freedom Day Christmas Day
Workers Day Day
of Goodwill
Any other day
declared an official public holiday from time to time should also be
granted.
These days
can be exchanged for any other day by agreement.
If the employee works on a public holiday he/she shall be paid double the normal days wage.
9. Annual LeaveAnnual leave
may not be less than three weeks per year for full-time workers or by
agreement, one day for every 17 days worked or one hour for every 17
hours worked.
The leave must be granted not later than six months after completion of the period of 12 consecutive months of employment. The leave may not be granted concurrent with any period of sick leave, nor with a period of notice of termination of the contract of employment.
10. Sick leaveDuring every
sick leave cycle of 36 months an employee is entitled to an amount of
paid sick leave equal to the number of days the employee would normally
work during a period of six weeks.
During the
first six months of employment, an employee is entitled to one day00
paid sick leave for every 26 days worked.
The employer is not required to pay an employee if the employee has been absent from work for more than two consecutive days or on more than two occasions during an eight-week period and, on request by the employer, does not produce a medical certificate stating that the employee was unable to work for the duration of the employee00 absence on account of sickness or injury.
11. Maternity leaveThe employee is entitled to at least four consecutive months00maternity leave. The employer is not obliged to pay the domestic worker for the period for which she is off work due to her pregnancy. However the parties may agree that the domestic worker will receive part of or her entire salary/wage for the time that she is off due to pregnancy.
12. Family responsibility leaveEmployees employed for longer than four months and for at least four days a week are entitled to take five days00paid family responsibility leave during each leave cycle when the employee00 child is born, or when the employee00 child is sick or in the event of the death of the employee00 spouse or life partner or parent, adoptive parent, grandparent, child, adopted child, grandchild or sibling.
13. Deduction from the remunerationThe Sectoral
Determination prohibits an employer from deducting any monies from the
workers wages without his/her written permission.
A deduction of not more than 10% of the wage may be deducted for a room or other accommodation provided it is kept in a good condition has at least one window and a door, which can be locked, and he/she has access to a bathroom.
14. Other issuesThere are certain other issues which are not regulated by the Sectoral Determination such as probationary periods, right of entry to the employers premises, afternoons off, weekends off and pension schemes, medical aid schemes, training/school fees, funeral benefits and savings account, however the aforementioned may be negotiated between the parties and included in the contract of employment.
15 Prohibition of EmploymentThe Sectoral Determination prohibits employment of any person under the age of 15 and it is therefore important for an employer to verify the age of the domestic worker by requesting a copy of the identity document or birth certificate.
16. Other conditions of employmentThere is no provision, which prevents any other conditions of employment being included in a contract of employment but any provision, which sets conditions, which are less favourable than those set by the Determination, would be invalid.
These guidelines are not meant to be a complete summary of the Sectoral Determination and/or legal advice. Should there be any doubt as to rights and/or obligations in terms of the Act or terms of any clause of the suggested Contract of Employment, such queries can be directed to the local office of the Department of Labour, who will gladly assist.
