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Labour Relations Act, 1995 (Act No. 66 of 1995)

Chapter VII : Dispute Resolution

Part C : Resolution of disputes under auspices of Commission

150B. Composition of advisory arbitration panel

 

(1) The panel contemplated in section 150A(1) must consist of—
(a) a senior commissioner as the chairperson of the panel; and
(b) subject to subsection (2)—
(i) an assessor appointed by the employer party to the dispute; and
(ii) an assessor appointed by the trade union party to the dispute.

 

(2) If the employer or trade union party to the dispute fails or refuses to appoint an assessor within the prescribed time period, the director must appoint an assessor from the relevant list of assessors determined in terms of subsection (3).

 

(3) NEDLAC must, in the prescribed manner, provide the director with two lists of assessors which shall consist of—
(a) the employer list of assessors which must be determined by organised business as defined in section 1 of the National Economic Development and Labour Advisory Act, 1994 (Act No. 35 of 1994); and
(b) the trade union list of assessors which must be determined by organised labour as defined in section 1 of the Act referred to in paragraph (a).

 

(4) If the employer or trade union party to the dispute fails or refuses to participate in the proceedings of the panel established in terms of section 150A, the director must appoint a person with the requisite expertise to represent the interests of that party in the proceedings.

 

(5) The chairperson of the panel, after consultation with the assessors appointed in terms of this section, may—
(a) conduct the arbitration in a manner that the chairperson considers appropriate in order to make an advisory award fairly and quickly but must deal with the substantial merits of the dispute with minimal legal formalities;
(b) exercise the powers of a commissioner under section 142;
(c) order the disclosure of all relevant information—
(ii) only if that information is necessary in order to make the factual finding and recommendations contemplated in section 150C(1)(a) and (b).

 

(6) The panel must conduct its proceedings and issue an award within seven days of the arbitration hearing or any reasonable period extended by the director as the case may be, taking into account the urgency of a resolution of the dispute arising from the circumstances contemplated in section 150A(3)(a) to (c).

 

(7) The appointment of the panel does not interrupt or suspend the right to strike or the recourse to lockout in accordance with Chapter IV.

 

[Section 150B inserted by section 17 of Notice No. 1304, GG 42061, dated 27 November 2018]