Promotion in the workplace can be a tricky subject – employees do not have an automatic right to be promoted, as this would be an unfair and near impossible burden on employers. Scorpion Legal Protection discusses the laws around promotion in the workplace.
Scorpion Legal Protection’s advice
If there are conditions in her employment contract relating to a promotion, then Nono could make a claim in terms of these conditions. Employers are free to choose who they want to appoint to any vacant post, whether it is a promotion or not. This, however, does not take away the normal requirements of recruitment and selection, and very importantly the requirement of fairness and objectivity. No employee is entitled to preference regarding career advancement in the employers’ organisation, or preference over job applicants from outside the organisation. Nono’s manager failing or refusing to promote her to a higher post is only an ‘unfair labour practice’ if he actually carried out an unfair action. If Nono’s manager can show that the selection for the post was made fairly, reasonably and lawfully, then there cannot be a dispute of unfair labour practice. In terms of the Labour Relations Act, employees have 90 days to report the matter to the CCMA if they feel they were unfairly refused a promotion.
Tips:
- Always check your employment contract to see if there are terms relating to a promotion.
- If you feel that your boss has acted unfairly, you can refer your matter to the CCMA.
If you have a query, follow us on our Facebook page and ask your question during our next Live Q&A (every first Thursday of the month).
* This is only basic advice and cannot be relied on solely. Names have been changed to protect identity.