Home / Non-Accredited / Human Resources, Labour & Employment Equity / Effective Disciplinary Hearing Training (2 days)
Quick Look Course Summary:Effective Disciplinary Hearing Training (2 days)
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Length: 2 day(s)
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Price (at your venue): 1 Person R 10,326 EX VAT 3 Person R 7,594 EX VAT 10 Person R 5,537 EX VAT
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Certification Type:Non-Accredited
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Locations & Venues:
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Effective Disciplinary Hearing Training (2 days)
Managers and HR run disciplinary processes that are fair, consistent and able to stand up at the CCMA.
A dismissal can be justified on the facts and still be ruled unfair because the hearing skipped a step. Vague charges, a chairperson who was involved in the investigation, missing records or treating poor performance as misconduct are the errors that cost employers reinstatement orders and compensation. This disciplinary hearing training gives HR practitioners, line managers and shop stewards the legal grounding and practical skills to handle the whole disciplinary process correctly, from the first incident to the final outcome.
Day one covers the framework: the labour legislation and the Code of Good Practice: Dismissal, the employment issues that shape discipline, the difference between poor performance and misconduct, progressive discipline, investigating an incident and drafting a clear charge sheet. Day two covers the hearing itself: roles and rights, order of proceedings, evidence, findings, sanction, records and appeals, practised in a full mock hearing. The course closes with what happens when a dispute is referred to conciliation and arbitration.
Your organisation gains chairpersons and initiators who protect both the employee's rights and the employer's position. Content is general guidance on South African labour law, not legal advice, and can be aligned to your own disciplinary code.
Why this course
For your organisation
- Disciplinary outcomes that are easier to defend at the CCMA or a bargaining council
- Consistent discipline across managers, shifts and sites
- Fewer procedural errors such as vague charges or partial chairpersons
- Proper records of every step, from investigation to sanction
For your delegates
- A clear picture of what fair procedure requires in South Africa
- Templates for an investigation plan, charge sheet and notice of hearing
- Hands-on practice in a full mock hearing
- Confidence to act in the role of chairperson, initiator or representative
What delegates will be able to do
- Explain substantive and procedural fairness under the Labour Relations Act and the Code of Good Practice: Dismissal
- Decide whether a problem is misconduct, incapacity or poor performance, and choose the correct route
- Apply progressive discipline consistently
- Plan an investigation and draft a clear charge sheet and notice of hearing
- Explain the roles of the chairperson, initiator, employee, representative and witnesses
- Weigh evidence on a balance of probabilities and reach a reasoned finding
- Decide an appropriate sanction, taking mitigating and aggravating factors into account
- Describe the conciliation and arbitration process and prepare for it
Who should attend
HR managers and practitioners, line managers, operations managers, team leaders and shop stewards who may initiate, chair or represent an employee in a disciplinary hearing, and anyone responsible for applying the organisation's disciplinary code.
Course outline
Day 1 – The law and the disciplinary process
The legal framework for discipline
- The Labour Relations Act, Basic Conditions of Employment Act, Employment Equity Act and Occupational Health and Safety Act
- Schedule 8: the Code of Good Practice: Dismissal
- Substantive and procedural fairness
- The roles of the CCMA, bargaining councils and the Labour Court
- Staying current with amendments to labour law
Employment issues that shape discipline
- Recruitment, employment contracts and temporary employment
- Employees compared with independent contractors
- Conditions of service, working time and leave
- Codes of conduct, company policies and procedures
- Employment equity and unfair discrimination
Poor performance or misconduct?
- Setting and measuring performance standards
- Counselling and performance improvement plans
- Incapacity through poor performance or ill health
- Choosing between misconduct, incapacity and operational requirements
Discipline and disciplinary action
- Corrective rather than punitive discipline
- Progressive discipline: verbal, written and final written warnings
- Unfair labour practices, unfair dismissals and automatically unfair dismissals
- Grievance, disciplinary and retrenchment procedures
Investigating misconduct
- Planning and carrying out an investigation
- Collecting documents, statements and other evidence
- When precautionary suspension is appropriate
- Drafting a clear charge sheet and notice of hearing
Day 2 – The hearing and what follows
Roles and rights in a hearing
- The chairperson's impartiality and independence
- The initiator, employee, representative, witnesses and interpreter
- The employee's rights: notice, representation, interpretation and stating a case
- Preparing for the hearing
Running a fair hearing
- Order of proceedings
- Direct, circumstantial, documentary and hearsay evidence
- Questioning and cross-examining witnesses
- The balance of probabilities
- Postponements and hearings when the employee does not attend
Findings, sanction, records and appeals
- Keeping the finding on guilt separate from the decision on sanction
- Mitigating and aggravating factors
- Consistency and the parity principle
- Writing the outcome and keeping the record
- Handling an internal appeal
Mock disciplinary hearing
- Preparing the case from a scenario pack
- Role-play as chairperson, initiator, employee and witnesses
- Facilitator and peer review of the procedure and the finding
Disputes: the CCMA and beyond
- Conciliation, arbitration and con-arb
- Preparing bundles and witnesses for arbitration
- Arbitration awards, reviews and settlement agreements
- Overview of trade unions, shop stewards, collective agreements, strikes and lockouts
How it is delivered
Two days, 08:30-16:00. In person at your offices anywhere in South Africa, at a BOTI venue, or live online. One delegate or a group of up to about 20; the mock hearing can be built around your own disciplinary code. Workbook, templates and scenario pack included. We deliver it at your offices in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Cape Town and anywhere else in South Africa, at a BOTI venue in Johannesburg, or live online for teams in different places.
What our clients say
“We were highly impressed by the high caliber of the training provided. The facilitator demonstrated a deep level of expertise that added significant value to the sessions.”
“The course was efficiently scheduled and planned around our timetable. We were impressed by the quality of training given.”
“[The organisation] was highly satisfied with the work conducted … demonstrated a high level of professionalism when conducting the training and deadline driven. Quality material and well-designed course content was utilised.”
Frequently asked questions
Can you train our managers on site?
Yes. We deliver at your premises anywhere in South Africa, at a BOTI venue or live online.
How many people can attend?
One delegate up to a group of about 20. The mock hearing works best with at least six delegates, so smaller groups use a shortened version.
Is the course accredited?
No. It is a non-accredited short course and delegates receive a BOTI certificate of attendance.
Can you use our disciplinary code?
Yes. Send us your code and procedure beforehand and the facilitator aligns the examples, templates and mock hearing to it.
How does this compare with the Chairing Disciplinary Hearings Course?
This two-day course covers the whole disciplinary process for managers and HR, from investigation to the CCMA. The three-day Chairing Disciplinary Hearings Course goes deeper into the chairperson's role, with a full day of mock hearings in which every delegate chairs.
Can you run this course in Johannesburg, Cape Town or Durban?
Yes. We train on site at your offices in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Cape Town and across South Africa, at a BOTI venue in Johannesburg, or live online so a team spread over several offices can attend together.
Related courses
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Monday to Friday, 08:00–17:00. After hours, we reply on the next working day – or call 011 882 8853.