There is no denying that the working environment has changed in both large and small businesses. Technology has taken over the workplace, and during the recent covid error, we witnessed a slight increase in production while workers are not in the office. Working from home or remotely has also become popular among many people. While many people lost their employment during the pandemic, a large number of jobs were also established on internet platforms, allowing people to continue carrying out their obligations while relaxing at home.
The number of digital nomads remote workers who operate remotely using tools like Microsoft Teams or Zoom has increased significantly as a result of this development.
“It is understandable that employers would wish to accommodate their key talent by allowing them the flexibility to work from abroad. However, there are legal risks that the employer could inadvertently trigger,” said Helen Wilsenach, Head of Employment and Benefits at leading African law firm Bowmans.
According to her, there are three main employment legal issues that firms could encounter when an employee requests to work from a foreign country.
“First, the employer may find itself shouldering an additional compliance burden in the host jurisdiction and carrying higher costs as a result. Then, if the employment relationship breaks down, the employment law regime of the host country may be triggered,” says Wilsenach.
She further adds “The employer will also need to give careful thought to how remote working impacts the benefit schemes it has in place and how the employee participates in these schemes. Related to this, the employer’s South African-based employees could also take issue if the impression is created that certain employees are being unfairly favored.”
Remote working and Motivation
One of the top professional recruiting consultancies in the world, Michael Page specializes in placing people with customers all over the world in permanent, contract, temporary, and interim employment just conducted research that remote working leads to more productivity and motivation
The recruitment consultancy found out that “working remotely didn’t make people less motivated in fact, in South Africa, more than 50% of workers reported feeling more motivated than before, with 41% reporting no change. The majority of respondents (82%) claimed to have flexible start and stop times during the workday, and 87% indicated they had not cut back on their working hours.”
One of the largest flexible work experiments in history was created as a result of the shutdown, and experts who participated in the poll said the remote work experience was extremely successful. Given how their present business handled their staff during the lockdown, 54% of job candidates residing in South Africa who visited our website say they feel as dedicated as before, and 28% say they feel even more devoted.
Remote working Visa
An upcoming remote working visa may also be available in South Africa. That’s what President Cyril Ramaphosa said in his most recent State of the Nation Address. spoke about “streamlining and modernizing the visa application process”.
“A comprehensive review of the work visa system is currently underway, led by a former Director-General of Home Affairs, Mr Mavuso Msimang, this review is exploring the possibility of new visa categories that could enable economic growth, such as a start-up visa and a remote working visa.”said Ramaphosa.
Professionals will be able to reside and work for a foreign company in South Africa with the help of a remote working visa. These experts are permitted entry under the current visa system, but only for a short period of time 90 days or fewer.
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