Abstract
LL.M. (Labour Law)
The fundamental pillar any democratic society is founded on is the impartiality of the judiciary. The judiciary should exercise their responsibilities impartially without fear, favour and prejudice. The concept of an independent judiciary solely rests on the doctrine of separation of powers and in South Africa this is of the utmost importance.
The issue of whether magistrates are considered to be employees in terms of the Labour Relations Act is pivotal to the discussion of this dissertation. It investigates the question whether they employees since measures are not put into place to conclusively clarify whether or not magistrates should be employees in terms of the Labour Relations Act.
This dissertation will therefore investigate whether or not magistrates do in fact have the power to utilise labour law remedies and what other remedies there will be entitled to pursue.
There is no clear distinct answer to the question posed but inferences are made from research indicating why the independence of the judiciary should not allow for magistrates to be considered as employees.
The contract of employment and the existence of an employment relationship will clarify why on the face of it magistrates should be considered as employees but why the independence of the judiciary serves a greater purpose.
This dissertation concludes by making recommendations as to how the issue of grievances of magistrates can be made appropriate through the use of a Code of Conduct working hand in hand with the Magistrates Act.