Effective immediately upon publication on 4 September 2025, the Minister of Employment and Labour introduced the final Code of Good Practice: Dismissal, replacing both the previous Schedule 8 Code and the separate Operational Requirements Code.
Government Gazette Vol 723_Code of Good Practice- Dismissal_2025.pdf
Key Updates and Implications
1. Fairness with Flexibility for Small Businesses
- The Code acknowledges the operational constraints small businesses face and permits greater procedural flexibility, balancing fairness with feasibility.
2. Modernised Approach to Disciplinary Processes
- Emphasises a context-sensitive corrective discipline model. Dismissal must be used only when continued employment is clearly untenable and reflective of serious misconduct, incapacity, or operational necessity.
3. Promoting Consistency and Equity
- Sets the expectation that employees committing similar misconduct under similar conditions should receive similar sanctions. However, dismissal may still be fair if the employment relationship has been irreparably damaged.
4. Enhanced Clarity on Incapacity and Probation
- The Code provides detailed guidance for dismissal due to incapacity – including for reasons like incompatibility, incarceration, and ill health – plus probation-related termination standards.
5. Streamlining Retrenchment Process
- Incorporates operational-requirements dismissals into one cohesive framework. Includes a new annexure detailing the minimum content required for a Section 189(3) notice, improving clarity for employers and employees alike.
6. Dialogue-Centric Procedural Intent
Encourages a shift away from rigid, adversarial disciplinary hearings toward informal, reflective dialogue – reflecting a trend toward decriminalising workplace fairness
