RE-NEGOTIATING EMPLOYMENT TERMSUnder the Employment Act, the terms and conditions of an employee’s employment contract cannot be revised without the employer consulting with their employees. This has been particularly relevant for businesses that could not realistically remain operational during the pandemic, even with remote working arrangements. The law should be amended to provide that where an employee is required to be in quarantine due to Covid-19, the quarantine period should be considered an additional sick leave period. Given the unique circumstances arising from the pandemic employers should be allowed to re-employ people to fill roles declared redundant if things return to normal earlier than 12 months. However, if an employer has had to send certain of its employees on unpaid leave these payments should be suspended for the duration of the unpaid leave.

Source: Daily Nation May 27, 2020 11:48 UTC