What is a Job description?
It is a formal account of the Employee’s responsibilities.
Can you change the Job Description of an Employee?
A job description forms part of an employee’s contract. Therefore, one cannot unilaterally change anything in a contract of an Employee.
What is a Unilateral Change?
This is when, in the context of labour law, the Employer changes any contract or policy within the Company, that an Employee has signed, without any consent or discussion of the change with the Employee. This is unlawful as per Labour Law.
If this is the case, can you Change anything in a job description?
Yes.
Should you have anything to change in the job description of the Employee, such as more duties need to be given or there is a change in position in the company, the Employer will have to discuss such changes with the Employee, and thereby gain the Employee’s agreement to change the job description.
Can an employee conduct tasks outside of the Job Description?
Yes.
If an Employer is asking an Employee to conduct tasks outside of the job description the Employer needs to ask as per the questions dictated by SATAWU / Auto Carriers (East London branch) [2—7] 5 BALR 493 9P:
[a] What are the terms and/or conditions of the employee’s contract?
[b] What is the nature of the task to be performed?
[c] What are the circumstances in which the instruction is given?
[d] What are the employer’s operational requirements?
Should the tasks form part of the regular duties of the Employee, for example a byproduct of the job, like a driver offloading a truck, that’s not changing the job description. However if you are asking the Truck driver to now do cashups and reconciliation of the Company’s books, that is a change of the job description and not a legal instruction of a driver.
In conclusion any change to an Employee’s contract needs to be discussed and agreed upon by the Employer.
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