1: The above- mentioned matter bears reference.
2: Kindly take note that neither the Gauteng, nor Mpumalanga, Limpopo or Northwest provinces have a bargaining Council in place for the building industry, and therefore there is no statutory Building holiday.
3: The decision and announcement of the builder’s break is therefore at present decided in terms of an industry understanding as well as a guideline provided by the Master Builders Association North (MBA North) annually. This is however not prescriptive and serves a mere advisory role.
4: In principle, it is recommended that the entire industry, including contractors, subcontractors, suppliers and alike close their business until the new year, to give their staff leave during this period.
5: The minimum entitlement of employment is as follows:
- Every employee is entitled, under the provisions of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, to at least 21 consecutive days (i.e., 15 working days) leave of absence on full pay in respect of each period of 12 consecutive month of employment.
- In addition to the above, the leave must be extended by an extra working day on full pay for each Public Holiday which falls on what otherwise would have been a normal working day during the leave period.
- During the December 2022 and January 2023 period, there are public holidays which fall on normal working days, namely Friday 16 December 2022 , Monday 26 December 2022 and Monday 2nd January 2023 .
6: The MBA North recommended period for Builders Break for 2022/2023 will run from the last day of work Friday 09 December 2022, until Friday 6 January 2023. The industry will return to work Monday 09 January 2023.
7: It is advisable that your company has a policy folder in place, dealing with all staff matters to ensure that all staff are informed of internal policies and procedures, as well as have certainly on how to approach this matter.
