URGENT NOTICE: Fast Food, Restaurant, Catering and Allied Trades

On 18 December 2020 the Minister of Employment and Labour declared that the Main Collective Agreement which was concluded in the Bargaining Council for the Fast Food, Restaurant, Catering and Allied Trades, and is binding on the parties which concluded the Agreement, shall now be binding on all other employers and employees in the Industry. The declaration was published in the Government Gazette on 08 January 2021 and will take effect on Monday 18 January 2021.

Background:

The Bargaining Council for the Fast Food, Catering, Restaurant and Allied Trades (BCFFRCAT), was registered with the Department of Labour in terms of the Labour Relations Act of 1995 on 20 February 2020.

The Bargaining Council consists of unions and employers' organisations, with the purpose of collectively agreeing to terms and conditions of employment and implementing them, as agreed. The Statutory Council would also deal with disputes and non-compliance of the Collective Agreement.

When unions and employers' organisations establish a council they elect a governing body to negotiate a degree of certainty and protection for both employees and employers. The effect of the council’s agreement is a method of counting the imbalance of behaviour between individual employer and employees and it is important that the terms and conditions of employment are collectively agreed upon.

Extension to non-parties and scope of application:

Except for Gauteng and certain regions, employers in the Fast Food, Restaurant and Catering Industry in all the other provinces of the country need to take serious heed of this extension to non-parties.

Employers should refer to the Bargaining Council’s scope of application to confirm whether the Agreement applies to their businesses or not. It should be noted that hotels and casinos, sports and recreation clubs, filling and/or service stations and supermarkets where food and beverage sales is owned and operated by them is excluded from the definition of “sector” as defined in the Agreement, and these establishments are therefore not required to register with the Council.

It should be noted that it is compulsory for businesses that fall within the Bargaining Council’s scope of application to register with the Council and to comply with the provisions of the Main Collective Agreement.

Unless there is legal opposition to this, employers who are unable to comply with the Agreement will need to apply for exemption as soon as possible to avoid being penalised for non-compliance.

We are aware that several role players in the industry have indicated that they will be opposing the extension of the Bargaining Council's Main Collective Agreement to non-parties and will follow the developments closely.

Implications for employers:

It should be noted that the Main Collective Agreement is quite an extensive document and it is extremely important for employers to familiarise themselves with the provisions thereof.

We would however like to bring the following to your attention:

Minimum Wages:

The industry’s minimum wages will in future be regulated by the Bargaining Council. Minimum wages starting at R22.25 (7.19% over the current National Minimum Wage), to increase again in May THIS YEAR by CPI plus 1.5%.

Provident Fund:

Membership of the Bargaining Council’s provident fund is compulsory for all employees who are employed within the scope and sector of the Council. For the purpose of providing employees with Provident Fund Benefits, every employer shall in respect of each month deduct 5% from the wages payable to each employee and add to such deduction an equal amount of 5%.

Funeral Benefits:

To provide employees with Funeral Benefits, every employer shall in respect of each month deduct R12.50 from the wages payable to each employee and add to such a deduction an amount of R12.50.

Mandatory Bonuses:

All employees other than part time, commission workers and employees earning in excess of the threshold as stipulated in clause 9(11) of the Agreement, who are employed by the same employer for a minimum of:

• 12 consecutive months, shall receive one week's wages as an annual bonus payable during December.

• 24 consecutive months or more, shall receive 2 weeks’ wages as an annual bonus payable during December.

Bargaining Council Levies:

Levy: R10.00 per employee per month (half of which may be deducted from the employee’s wages).

Dispute Resolution Levy: R6.00 per employee per month (half of which may be deducted from the employee’s wages).

Employer Levy: R25 per establishment per month.

Allowances:

Night Work Allowance:

Employees who are required to perform night work, must be paid an amount of R1.00 per hour shift allowance in addition to the employee’s salary for the hours worked between 18:00 and 06:00 or granted at least ten minutes time off on full pay for every hour worked at the end of each week.

Late Night Allowance:

Employees who are required to work after 22h30 shall be paid R150.00 per month as a "Late Night Allowance", except where the employer provides free daily transport home for late night workers.

Uniform Allowance:

Employees who are required to clean their uniforms in their own time must be paid an amount of R17.50 per week. This amount is not payable when the employee is off work.

Limitation on number of working days:

Employees may not work more than six days per week, including Sundays.

Employee access to Collective Agreement:

Employers must display a copy of the Collective Agreement in a prominent place in the workplace to which all employees have access.

Follow this link to download a copy of the Government Gazette (No.44058) dated 8 January 2021 for your perusal and ease of reference.

Please contact us should you have any questions or require assistance in this regard.