The HR compliance checklist

Contracts and records

1. Every employee has written particulars of employment, signed and on file. BCEA s29.
2. Particulars are updated in writing whenever pay, hours, the job or the place of work changes. BCEA s29(3).
3. Any fixed-term contract running longer than three months has a written, justifiable reason. LRA s198B.
4. You hold a copy of each employee's ID or valid work permit, and the expiry dates are diarised.
5. Records of employees who have left are kept for three years. BCEA s31.

Pay, and what you pay over

6. A payslip goes out with every payment, showing everything the Act requires on it. BCEA s33.
7. Nothing is deducted from pay without written consent or a law requiring it. BCEA s34.
8. Everyone is paid at or above the national minimum wage. It changes every March, so check the current figure.
9. Any sectoral determination or bargaining council agreement that covers your industry is applied.
10. Overtime, Sunday and public holiday pay follow the BCEA rules where those rules apply to the employee.
11. You are registered with the UIF and your monthly declarations are up to date.
12. You are registered with the Compensation Fund under COIDA and the annual Return of Earnings is submitted.
13. Skills Development Levy is paid if your annual payroll is above R500 000.

Leave

14. Leave is recorded per employee, per cycle, with a balance you could defend to an inspector.
15. Annual leave is 21 consecutive days a cycle, which is 15 working days on a five-day week. BCEA s20.
16. Sick leave is measured over a 36-month cycle rather than a calendar year. BCEA s22.
17. A medical certificate is asked for only where the Act allows it, and it is filed where only HR can see it. BCEA s23.
18. Family responsibility leave becomes available after four months' service. BCEA s27.
19. Your maternity, parental and adoption leave position is written down. The courts have been reshaping parental leave, so confirm where you stand.
20. Leave still owed is paid out when somebody leaves. BCEA s40.

Discipline and performance

21. You have a written disciplinary code and a grievance procedure, and your staff have actually seen them.
22. Your code and letter templates have been checked against the Code of Good Practice: Dismissal published on 4 September 2025, which repealed the old Schedule 8 code.
23. Every warning is in writing, dated, with a validity period, and either signed or delivered with proof.
24. Before a hearing: written notice of the allegation, enough time to prepare, and the right to representation.
25. After a hearing: the outcome in writing, with reasons.
26. Poor performance is handled as incapacity, with evaluation, guidance and a real chance to improve, rather than as misconduct.
27. Probation is used to assess, with an evaluation and a written outcome at the end of it.

When somebody leaves

28. Notice is given according to length of service, or paid instead. BCEA s37.
29. Final pay includes any outstanding leave. BCEA s40.
30. A certificate of service is handed over. BCEA s42.
31. The UI-19 goes to the UIF so the person can claim.
32. Company property is booked back in and access is closed on the last day.

POPIA and safety

33. An Information Officer is registered with the Information Regulator.
34. Staff records are on a need-to-know basis, with medical information kept apart from the rest.
35. You know what you would do if an employee asked what personal information you hold about them.
36. Health and safety: new staff are inducted, first aiders are appointed, and an incident register is kept.
37. If you employ 50 or more people you are a designated employer under the Employment Equity Act, with a plan and annual reporting. Check which side of that line you are on.