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LRT811S - Labour Relations Theory - 1st OPP - JUN 2023 |
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nAmlBIA unlVERSITY
OF SCIEn CE Ano TECHn OLOGY
FACULTY OF COMMERCE, HUMAN SCIENCESAND EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES
QUALIFICATION: BACHELOR OF EMPLOYMENT AND LABOUR RELATIONS HONOURS
QUALIFICATION CODE: 08BILR
LEVEL: 8
COURSE CODE: LRT811S
SESSION: JUNE/ JULY 2023
COURSE NAME: LABOUR RELATIONSTHEORY
PAPER: THEORY
DURATION: 3 HOURS
MARKS: 100
FIRST OPPORTUNITY EXAMINATION QUESTION PAPER
EXAMINER(S) Mr Elias Kandjinga
Ms Penehafo Johannes
MODERATOR:
1. Answer ALL the questions.
INSTRUCTIONS
2. You are expected to apply your subject knowledge to the questions.
3. Write clearly and neatly.
4. Number your answers clearly.
1. Pen
2. Ruler
PERMISSIBLE MATERIALS
THIS QUESTION PAPER CONSISTS OF 5 PAGES {Including this front page)
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Section A (Answer all the questions)
[SO marks]
· Question 1
1.1. Discussthe role-players in employment relations by describing each party's role
and critically analysing the importance of each party.
[15]
1.2. Martha is a waitress at a popular Windhoek restaurant. She has been
suspended without pay pending the outcome of a disciplinary hearing. Martha
feels that the procedures followed during the disciplinary inquiry were not fair as
she was not allowed to state her case, to have representation of a union member
or to call witnesses. Which type of justice perception is applicable in Martha's case?
Substantiate your answer and discuss this justice perception in detail.
[10]
1.3. Think of any two popular Namibian trade unions and discuss the critical role they
played as representative of employees at any two organisations they legitimately
acquired organisational rights.
[15]
1.4. Explain the concept of freedom of association and provide an example of a
situation when a person's right to freedom of association would be violated. [10]
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Section B (Answer all the questions}
[50 marks]
Question 1
Read the following case study and answer all the following questions.
···-··-· -·····--· .... ·············-····-······--···-·-····--·
: Making ends meet
··-······· ··-··-·· ---
i Freddy and Denise started dating in their final year at school. Madly in love, they :
i decided that they would be "partners for life". The year after completing school they i
decided to get married, because Denise fell pregnant. They struggled financially and I
jobs were hard to come by. Ultimately, they both landed jobs at Meet Meat Mates, a :
popular Windhoek restaurant and bar. Denise became a waitress and Freddy was given .
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the job of "kitchen-hand". Denise was doing very well because of all the tips she ·
! received. Both were working long hours and because they generally did not work the i
'
! same shifts, they really found it sad that they could not spend a lot of time together :
I socially. Freddy decided that he had to augment his income and when he worked night ·
shifts, he would buy meat and boerewors and during day-times he would then prepare
!
i boerewors rolls and steak rolls on the streets in an industrial area close to where they
· were renting a one-bedroom cottage in the backyard of Denise's sister. Eventually
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Denise started doing the same during daytimes when she was scheduled to work night '
shifts at Meet Meat Mates. In this way they could ensure a continuous daily supply of :
· the food, which has become rather popular and was selling well. The people working ;
: in the surrounding factories expressed their sincere satisfaction with the quality of the !
· food as well as with the ways in which Freddy and Denise treated them.
: One day Moses Moala, the owner of Meet Meat Mates, noticed that Freddy was
I putting some spices in his bag. Moses saw Freddy leaving after work but decided to /
' ignore the incident and wait to see if it happened again. The second time he saw ,
: Freddy taking some of the spices, Moses immediately confronted him about it. Freddy i
: admitted that he has been taking a bit of spices a few times, explaining that he used
.
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i the spices when he made boerewors rolls and steak rolls in the small side-line business '
i he and Denise were running. This helped to make more money to make ends meet, as
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• they were saving up for the baby Denise was expecting in less than three months' time. ·
; Freddy apologised. Moses said that it should not happen again and that this was his I
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; final warning.
i Freddy nevertheless asked politely whether Moses would not please allow him to use i
i some of the spices, as that would help them a little bit financially. Moses refused.
: About two weeks later, another staff member of Meet Meat Mates told Moses that
; he saw Denise taking some spices earlier that evening. Moses was furious and went !
i straight to Denise while she was serving a customer. He told her there and then that •
; she was fired, and he said that she should go home immediately. He also said that she ·
i
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' should tell Freddy not to bother to come back to work there ever again; they were i
I' both
fired
because they
were
thieves.
Denise broke
down
in tears
and was very
upset
i
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i - as was the pair of customers who were being served by Denise at the time.
The woman took her escort by the hand, stating that Denise was really doing a very i
good job as waitress and that because she found the way in which Moses handled the
i situation extremely unprofessional and rude, they were leaving the restaurant. By this
i time Denise was already on her way out, sobbing. She was very worried because she
i knew that they needed the money, and the birth of her child was getting very close.
1.1. Considering the above case, comment on the following statement: "Discipline
is important in any workplace and Moses did what he had to do".
[S]
1.2. "Moses issued the final warning and therefore the dismissal was fair." Do you
agree with this statement? Why or why not? Substantiate your views.
[10]
1.3. Denise went to her sister that evening and asked her what she thought about
what had happened, denying that she had ever taken any spices. Her sister advised
her to go back the following day and file a grievance. Would you agree with that
advice? Why or why not? Explain fully.
[10]
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1.4. What advice would you give Freddy and Denise regarding the situation at Meet
Meat Mates? Do they have an alternative in terms of the Labour Act, or they should
forget about what happened and concentrate on formalising their street business
where they can introduce fair labour practices.
[9]
1.5. What advice would you give Moses regarding the "constructive and appropriate
use of discipline in the workplace"?
[8]
1.6. In a short summary, how did the Labour Relations Theory (LRT811S)as a course
shape your understanding of the employment relationship in contemporary
organisations? Do you foresee applying what you have learned thus far, how? Here,
you are required to express your understanding in your own words and not listing
topics or themes appearing in your prescribed course materials. Also, please note
that this question is twofold, the latter requiring you to relate theory to practice.
[8]
End of Paper!
Good Luck!
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