Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act No. 97 of 1998)ConstitutionsConstitution of the Energy Sector Education & Training Education (ESETA)20. Dispute Resolution |
| 20.1 | Any party to a dispute concerning the interpretation or application of this Constitution may refer the dispute to the Chief Executive Officer. |
| 20.2 | The referral must: |
| (a) | be in writing; |
| (b) | adequately describe the dispute; and |
| (c) | be delivered to every other party to the dispute by the party referring the dispute. |
| 20.3 | The Chief Executive Officer must, (within 7 days) as soon as reasonably practicable, refer the dispute to the Executive Committee, which must endeavour to resolve the dispute by conciliation within 30 days of referral of the dispute. |
| 20.4 | If the Executive Committee fails to resolve the dispute within 30 days of its referral, then any party to the dispute may refer it for arbitration by an arbitrator appointed in terms of the Arbitration Act, 1965 (Act no.42 of 1965). |
| 20.5 | The arbitrator must be agreed to by the parties to the dispute with the approval of the Chairperson of the Authority or, failing such agreement or approval, by an arbitrator appointed by the Chairperson of the Authority. |
| 20.6 | The arbitrator must first attempt to conciliate the dispute. If conciliation is not possible, then the arbitrator must arbitrate the dispute. |
| 20.7 | The arbitrator must conduct the arbitration in a manner that he or she considers appropriate in order to determine the dispute fairly and quickly, but must deal with the substantial merits of the dispute with the minimum of legal formality. |
| 20.8 | Within 14 days of conclusion of the arbitration proceedings: |
| (a) | the arbitrator must issue a signed arbitration award with reasons; and |
| (b) | the Chairperson must provide a copy of the award to every party to the dispute. |
| 20.9 | The arbitration award is final and binding on the parties to the dispute. |
| 20.10 | The costs of the arbitration must be borne equally by the parties to the dispute. The arbitrator may however make a different and appropriate award of costs if: |
| (a) | a party to the dispute, without reasonable cause, refuses or fails to attend the arbitration or unduly delays arbitration proceedings; or |
| (b) | the arbitrator finds that a party pursuing or resisting the dispute did so vexatiously or frivolously or had no reasonable prospect of succeeding. |
| 20.11 | An arbitrator may, at his or her own initiative or as a result of an application by an affected party, vary or rescind an award: |
| (a) | erroneously sought or made in the absence of any party affected by the award; |
| (b) | in which there is ambiguity, or any obvious error or omission, but only to the extent of the ambiguity, error or omission; or |
| (c) | granted as a result of a mistake common to the parties to the proceedings. |