November 2013 – MHI Attorneys Blog
We often hear of accidents in which a child or toddler is injured. Has this become something which society accepts as the norm… that accidents do happen?
Accidents happen so quickly, the kind which turns a day of excitement into a nightmare filled with horror. These types of freak accidents can happen in the blink of an eye if the necessary steps are not taken to prevent them.
Take your local restaurant as an example. Nowadays every restaurant has some sort of playroom or entertainment area, which is available for the use of children and toddlers. These entertainment areas have now also become popular at nurseries and even at functions such as weddings or parties, in order to keep the youngsters entertained.
The question remains – who is to be held responsible for ensuring the safety of all at these entertainment places? What is the legal position today in South Africa?
The person providing entertainment in an area qualifying in terms of the above, is also required to know how many people, including children, can be accommodated on the premises, and must also ensure that there is a sufficient number of attendants available to assist in ensuring that too many children do not enter the area of entertainment, alternatively ensure, upon admittance, that it is completely safe for them to do so.
Should the number of people (including children), exceed 50 in total, it remains the responsibility of the person providing the entertainment to ensure that all the reasonable steps and precautionary measures are taken to ensure the safety of the children and other people at such a place of entertainment, in order to ensure the safety of all at all times.
This brings us to another requirement. The requirement that the movement of all participants to the specific entertainment must also be monitored at all times.
The overall requirements to qualify in terms of Section 140 create the impression that the section and the measures to be taken only find application in situations where entertainment is presented indoors. This is in fact not the case. Outdoor entertainment areas, where access is controlled, also fall under these criteria.
Outdoor areas such as beaches and open fields will obviously not form part of or fall under the criteria, seeing that there is no regulation of access to such places.
The problem is that things can still go wrong and this brings us to the steps that can be taken against the offender.
Even though there are currently no criminal sanctions envisaged or determined, measures can still be implemented against the offender.
Other measures include municipal health and safety by-laws which may be invoked in order to disallow the entertainment until the necessary safety measures are taken.
And finally, there is always the option of instituting a delictual claim against the offender in the event of injury or damages suffered as a result of negligence on the part of the offender.
VERMAAK BY JOU GUNSTELING PLAASLIKE RESTAURANT OF KWEKERY: WIE IS AANSPREEKLIK VIR JOU KIND SE SEERKRY?
Ongelukke gebeur so vinnig, die soort ongelukke wat ‘n dag van opwinding en vreugde in ‘n nagmerrie gevul met afgryse verander. Hierdie tipe fratsongelukke kan binne ‘n oogwink gebeur indien die nodige stappe nie geneem word om hulle te verhoed nie.
Sipho Swart is continually being called gay and other related names by a group of people at the local taxi rank. He was recently pushed to the floor by one of these members of the group.
Roelien van der Merwe was distraught when she found out there is a website containing terrible comments about her. It was talking about her weight and said things along the lines that she was dirty. The website invited others to become actively be involved with bashing her.
The long awaited Protection from Harassment Act 17 of 2011 came into operation on 27 April 2013. Under the Act, harassment is not limited to physical and verbal abuse. People who receive threats or unwanted attention via social media and text messages may also apply for a protection order.
A warrant of arrest may be issued at the same time that the protection order is granted. If the person contravenes the protection order by continuing to harass the complainant, that person may be immediately arrested.
The complainant must apply for a protection order by completing an application form at any magistrate`s court where he/she lives or works or any magistrate’s court where the instigator of the harassment lives or works.
Sipho Swart word voortdurend `n moffie en ander verwante name genoem deur ‘n groep mense by die plaaslike taxi-staanplek en is boonop onlangs deur een van die lede van hierdie groep teen die grond gestamp.
Hoe doen ek aansoek om `n beskermingsbevel?
Die klaer kan aansoek doen om ‘n beskermingsbevel deur `n aansoekvorm te voltooi by `n landdroshof waar hy/sy woon of werk, of by ‘n landdroshof waar die aanhitser van die teistering woon of werk.
Die Wet op Arbeidsverhoudinge, 66 van 1995, (WAV ) was onlangs in die kollig na kommunikasies van die regering dat hy oorweeg om die onderwyssektor as ‘n noodsaaklike diens te verklaar. Dit het ‘n bron van spanning veroorsaak tussen die regering en die onderwyssektor se vakbonde met betrekking tot onderwysers se reg om te staak.
Die reg om te staak is ‘n grondwetlike reg wat verleen word aan alle werknemers kragtens artikel 23 (2)(c) van die Grondwet van die Republiek van Suid-Afrika, 108 van 1996. Die WAV plaas egter sekere beperkings op die reg om te staak ten opsigte van werknemers wat noodsaaklike dienste lewer.
‘n Diens of bedryf, of enige deel daarvan, kan as ‘n noodsaaklike diens verklaar word deur die Komitee vir Noodsaaklike Dienste wat kragtens artikel 70 van die WAV ingestel is. Die Komitee se taak is om ‘n diens, of enige deel van ‘n diens, as ‘n noodsaaklike diens te verklaar nadat daar behoorlik ondersoek is of so ‘n verklaring gemaak moet word al dan nie. Dit is van kritieke belang om daarop te let dat enige partye wat geraak word deur die verklaring van ‘n diens as ‘n noodsaaklike diens deur die Komitee, die reg het om kragtens artikel 71 van die WAV (waarin die prosedure waarvolgens die Komitee `n diens sal verklaar as ‘n noodsaaklike diens, uiteengesit word) vertoë te rig tot die Komitee met betrekking tot of ‘n diens verklaar moet word as `n noodsaaklike diens al dan nie.
Vakbonde het aangevoer dat die verklaring van ‘n sektor of diens as ‘n noodsaaklike diens ongrondwetlik is in die mate dat so ‘n verklaring die regte van werknemers in ‘n bepaalde nywerheid om te staak, wegneem. Terwyl dit egter korrek is dat artikel 74(1) van die WAV bepaal dat werknemers in ‘n verklaarde noodsaaklike diens nie mag staak nie, is hierdie bepalings nie eensydig nie en maak die WAV wél voorsiening vir bykomende meganismes wat die oënskynlik omvattende beperking op staking, teenwerk.
Eerstens word die werkgewer in die noodsaaklikedienssektor ook beperk in die gebruik van sy eie bedingingsmag om werknemers uit die werkplek te sluit en hul sodoende te dwing om die werkgewer se terme en voorwaardes te aanvaar. Die WAV gaan voort en maak voorsiening vir ‘n meganisme waarvolgens noodsaaklikedienswerkers wettig en regtens mag staak mits daar eers sekere ooreenkomste in gereedheid gebring is.
Artikel 72 van die WAV maak voorsiening vir partye in verklaarde noodsaaklike dienste om ‘n kollektiewe ooreenkoms te sluit, wat die minimumdienste wat deur werkers verskaf moet word in die geval van ‘n staking in daardie noodsaaklike diens, kan reguleer. Indien so ‘n minimumdiens kollektiewe ooreenkoms bereik is, sal dit die effek hê dat:
die minimumdiensvlakke waarop ooreengekom is, die noodsaaklike diens word; en
artikel 74 van die WAV wat verhoed dat noodsaaklikedienswerkers mag staak, nie meer van toepassing sal wees nie.
Dit sal beteken dat die enigste werknemers wat verhoed sal word om te staak daardie getal werknemers of persentasie van die arbeidsmag is wat benodig word om die noodsaaklike minimumdienste te lewer. Alle ander werknemers wat nie die minimumdienste hoef te lewer nie, selfs al is hulle in diens van ‘n sektor of bedryf wat as ‘n noodsaaklike diens verklaar is, sal toegelaat word om te staak.
Die minimumdiensooreenkoms moet die volgende besonderhede bevat:
of die diens in sy geheel of net ten dele noodsaaklik is;
of die diens steeds noodsaaklik is teen verlaagde diensvlakke;
die minimum getal werknemers wat nodig is om voort te gaan met die werk tydens ‘n staking, hetsy uitgedruk as ‘n syfer of as ‘n persentasie van die huidige arbeidsmag;
die aard van die dienste wat gedurende ‘n staking voortgesit moet word;
minimumdiensvlakke wat verband hou met onderskeie funksies en pligte wat tydens ‘n staking uitgevoer moet word; en
kwytskelding van die reg om tydelike vervangende arbeid aan te stel om dienste te lewer wat meer is as die minimumdienste.
In die lig van die voorgaande is dit duidelik dat, hoewel die WAV voorsiening maak vir ‘n meganisme waarvolgens sektore as ‘n noodsaaklike diens verklaar kan word, daar in die mate dat dit nie gedoen word nie, meganismes daargestel is vir die sluiting van minimumdiensooreenkomste deur die proses van kollektiewe bedinging as ‘n alternatiewe manier om volgehoue ​​minimumdiensvlakke te verseker.