In an effort to dodge some of the requirements as stated in the South African labour laws, countless employers will attempt to hire people as ‘independent contractors’ in the hopes that these terms will be blindly accepted. The truth of the matter is that many of these workers are often unaware that by accepting work as an independent contractor, they’re inevitably signing away their rights and benefits as employees. Of course, there are legitimate instances when workers are, in fact, independent contractors. Having said that, it is important to understand when being labelled as an independent contractor is justified and when you are being taken advantage of. Ultimately, if the any one of the following statements applies to you, you should almost certainly be listed as an employee within the organisation that you work for:
- The manner in which you work, as well as the hours that you work, are subject to the control of the organisation;
- Work performed for the organisation takes place at the organisation’s premises;
- You have worked for the organisation for a minimum of 40 hours per month every month for the past 3 months;
- You are economically dependent on the organisation to which you are rending your services;
- You make use of the organisation’s equipment and tools in order to perform the job for which you were hired;
- The organisation in question is the only organisation for which you are working.
What to Do if You Feel You Have Been Wrongfully Labelled as an Independent Contractor
If you are already a member of SAEWA and you believe that you have been taken advantage of in this regard, you can contact us for assistance and we will happily and swiftly attend to the matter on your behalf. If you are not a SAEWA member as yet, you can register with us by sending a please call me to 082 305 3888 and we will get back to you with more information about becoming a part of the united SAEWA family. As a politically independent trade union, you can always count on us to put YOUR needs FIRST.
Leave A Comment