Paternity Leave and Minimum Wages

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January 2019 NEWSLETTER

Paternity Leave and Minimum Wages – How Will The New Laws Affect You?

Both employers and employees should be up to speed with the new labour legislation which will affect all businesses and individuals on one level or another.

Firstly we discuss the new “parental leave” provisions relevant to fathers, adoptive parents and commissioning parents in surrogacy agreements.

Next we look at the new National Minimum Wage and the different hourly rates applicable to various categories of employee.

Finally we’ll address new provisions relating to strikes, lockouts and picketing.

Beware the Building Deadlines When Buying-to-Build
	Buying into a residential estate can be a great way of acquiring a safe and secure “dream home” for you and your family. Choose wisely and you also gain a valuable asset. You can either buy an existing house in the estate or you can buy a vacant stand on a “plot-and-plan” or “buy-to-build” basis. The latter gives you both added flexibility and (again, if you choose wisely) greater value. Just be aware upfront of the building clause in your contract – be sure that you will be able to develop your plot by whatever deadline is imposed on you. A recent High Court decision illustrates the risk and the financial cost of not complying.

Victims of Corruption Take Heart – “Big Chief” Gets 15 Years Behind Bars
	Corruption hurts us all in both our business and our private lives. Even those of us who aren’t the direct victims of tender fraud or bribery requests lose out from the general loss of confidence and investment in the country. So we can all take heart from two recent Supreme Court of Appeal decisions relating to corrupt politicians and businesses in the Northern Cape. In the first case, long “minimum sentence” terms of direct imprisonment were confirmed, and in the second the deceased estate of another politician who died during the course of her criminal trial was ordered to pay over her ill-gotten proceeds to the state. Read on for the details…

Property Developers Beware: Deemed Accruals Can Seriously Disrupt Your Cash Flow
	Property development can be a profitable business, but it also carries substantial risks. One of those is cash flow problems – get your projections wrong and you could face serious financial trouble. So it’s important you know of the recent SCA decision about a R1.9m income tax assessment levied by SARS on a developer which had sold plots in one tax year but was paid only during the next tax year when the transfers took place. Was it justified in declaring the income only in the second tax year? The Court’s decision has serious cash flow implications for developers in a similar position.

Your Website of the Month: “Ready, Steady, Loadshed!”
	Media reports suggest that loadshedding is likely to be with us for some time yet, and whether you happen to be at work or at home when one of the dreaded blackouts strikes, there’s nothing worse than being caught off guard. Avoid unpleasant surprises by knowing exactly when your area will go down. At least then you can get your office/factory/home-sweet-home ready beforehand. First step is to download one of the apps developed to help South Africans navigate the minefield of daily announcements and loadshedding schedules. Read about some of the best in “Be prepared for loadshedding with these apps” on IOL, and if you happen to live in an area that has enough of its own generating capacity to lessen the incidence and severity of loadshedding (Cape Town being one example), make sure that your chosen app incorporates that.

“Have a Healthy,
Happy and Successful
2019!”

Disclaimer

The information provided herein should not be used or relied on as professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your professional adviser for specific and detailed advice.

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