Implications of Conducting Adverse Hearing and Investigations While an Employee Faces Disciplinary and Criminal Cases: A Case Study in South Africa

The conducting of adverse hearings and investigations while an employee faces disciplinary and criminal cases, and its possible implicastions were examined in this study. The “Audi alteram partem” is applied interchangeably with procedural fairness when processing disciplinary or crime cases in adverse hearings or investigations. South African labour laws advocate for an employee to serve a 30-day notice when resigning for handover purposes, including activating other exiting processes by the employer and employee thereof. Qualitative research approach was adopted to gather relevant information for the study. Data with purpose of the study was gathered through observation and lived-experience, published court judgments, articles, and journals. The study results indicate that adverse hearings and investigations while an employee faces disciplinary and criminal cases can be conducted concurrently while taking into account section 35(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. The discussed three labour laws in the Republic of South Africa require to be reviewed to manage employer-employee relationships regarding the resignation or termination of an employment contract while an employee is subjected to adverse hearings or investigations.