Victory for Social Justice Coalition may result in poorer areas getting more officers By Thembela Ntongana and GroundUp Staff Judge MJ Dolamo of the Cape High Court (sitting as the Equality Court) has declared that the allocation of police resources in the Western Cape unfairly discriminates on the basis of race and poverty. The ruling came on Friday morning, and is a victory for...

This is what every employer and employee needs to know By Wilmien Wicomb On 27 November, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the National Minimum Wage Act. This was a significant moment for workers, because while certain vulnerable employees in, for example, the farming, hospitality and domestic work sectors have had sector-specific minimum wage standards, this is the first time that a universal minimum wage...

Maximum interest rate on second loans reduced By Ciaran Ryan Borrowers with more than one debt outstanding were given some protection last week when the Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that the interest rate on short-term loans after the first loan cannot exceed 3% a month. Micro Finance South Africa (MFSA) had challenged regulations promulgated under the National Credit Act reducing the interest...

Finding against COSATU’s Bongani Masuku overturned By Wilmien Wicomb The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) this week delivered a judgment that provided much needed clarity about the meaning of “hate speech” as prohibited in the Equality Act. Understanding what constitutes hate speech is crucial to properly protecting and promoting the right to freedom of expression. Besides being a fundamental human right in section 16...

More than 50 tenants of a derelict building in Hillbrow have taken their landlord to the Constitutional Court. When can a landlord evict law-abiding tenants in order to effect refurbishments? And when can a landlord evict tenants for this reason on an urgent basis? These two questions are currently before the Constitutional Court in an application for leave to appeal...

New Wild Coast route shortens road by 75km but passes through ancestral land By Zoë Postman The South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL), the Department of Environmental Affairs and Sinegugu Zukulu, a resident of the Umgungundlovu community in the Eastern Cape, were back in court on Monday over the construction of the N2 Highway through the Wild Coast. The new road extends about 560km between...

Kanana families want to be housed on site By Phathiswa Shushwana Some residents of Kanana informal settlement in Gugulethu are refusing to move to a new R1.1 billion development in Forest Village. The residents say they were told in a community meeting by ward councillor Bongani Ngcombolo in October that they must move to houses in Forest Village in Eersteriver to make way...