DEMOCRATISATION OF EMPLOYMENT IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR: A CONSTITUTIONAL PERSPECTIVE GROUNDED IN THE INTERPRETATION OF LITIGATED CASES BETWEEN 1996 AND 2013
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/0256-8845/662Keywords:
employment, relations, , public service, workplace, case law, democratic, constitutionalismAbstract
Employment in the South African public sector has reached the stage where it can be regarded as being fairly democratised. Democratised in this context refers to a democratic order where the state acknowledges key interest groups, such as public employees, tas important role players in the procedures, systems and structures of government. One major structural arrangement which has been developed in this regard is the entrenchment of democratic values and principles, such as the acknowledgement of basic human rights as contained in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996), which sets out the framework for a new democratic order in workplaces. The courts play an important role in safeguarding the fundamental rights employees. This article highlights the democratic values and principles that govern public administration and discusses court decisions and their implications for public sector employment theory and practice. Using a qualitative research method in which litigated court cases filed from 1996 to 2013 are interpreted and analysed, this article report that public employees are mistreated in the workplaces and that their human rights are abused. Emerging areas of concern are: unequal treatment, discrimination and unfair labour practices.
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Accepted 2015-11-25
Published 2015-11-25
