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Resource Guides

Securing a Home Resource Guides

Relocating to AA picRelocations have the potential to severely disrupt peoples’ lives and negatively impact their livelihoods, community relations and sense of security. To make sure this doesn’t happen, the relocation process should be carefully planned, well-run and participatory. SERI developed this set of legal and practical guidelines to assist those involved in the relocation process to navigate the complexities involved in planning for and carrying out a relocation. The guidelines present an approach to relocations based on SERI’s experience in planning and managing relocations to alternative housing and draw on international and local experience. The guidelines offer practical guidance on how to ensure that relocations are carried out in a way that respects the constitutional rights of the people being relocated. This guide was written by Michael Clark and Lauren Royston.

 

  

This is a user-friendly guide that explains the rights of farm dwellers and the law in relation to evictions from farmland. It gives advice on how farm dwellers can navigate the legal processes involved in eviction proceedings and practically resist evictions. It is a resource for farm dwellers facing eviction from their homes, as well as for farm worker unions, community-based paralegals and lawyers. The guide was developed by SERI and the Commercial Stevedoring Agricultural and Allied Workers Union (CSAAWU), and written by Tim Fish Hodgson and Dasantha Pillay.

The guide is also available in Afrikaans.

The guide is also accompanied by five information sheets available in English, Afrikaans and IsiXhosa:

 

SalesInExecThis guide explains the sale-in-execution process and sets out what steps homeowners can take to avoid their houses being sold in execution. Courts are legally required to make sure that sales-in-execution follow the proper legal process and that the interests of both homeowners and banks are balanced and protected. The laws which regulate sales-in-execution are complex and come from many sources. This guide will help homeowners prevent sales-in-execution before they happen. It will also help homeowners oppose sales in execution if the process to repossess their home is already underway, or if they have already lost their homes. This guide is a resource for individuals and households who are facing the threat of a sale in execution of their homes, as well as for community-based paralegals and lawyers who deal with sales in execution of people’s homes or bank repossessions. This guide was written by Michael Clark.

Resisting Evictions FINALThis guide explains your rights and the law regarding evictions, and gives practical advice on how to resist them. It is a resource for individuals, households and communities who are facing eviction from their homes, as well as for community-based paralegals, CBOs, social movements etc. The guide covers a number of different issues: what is an eviction, what the law says about evictions, when an eviction is unlawful, the lawful process for an eviction, how to oppose a lawful eviction, and how to resist an unlawful eviction. It is one of the resources in the Dear Mandela Toolkit, aimed at informing individuals, communities and CBOs of their rights.

 

 

This guide was developed by SERI and the Centre for Urbanism and Built Environment Studies (CUBES) based at Wits University, and is meant to help tenants. It is structured in three sections which cover the start, duration and end of the landlord-tenant relationship. In each of these sections there are a number of questions which tenants have often asked SERI or CUBES when they have come to us for support. The answers provided are meant to assist tenants to protect themselves against unfair and illegal conduct by landlords and to understand when the law says that a tenant is acting unfairly and illegally.

 

This booklet was developed because of difficulties faced trying to access laws and regulations on landlord-tenant relations and rental housing in South Africa. It includes the Rental Housing Act 50 of 1999 and the Gauteng Unfair Practices Regulations, 2001, which are printed in full together with some guidelines to help readers navigate the content. The booklet is meant to be a companion to another SERI guide: A Tenant’s Guide to Rental Housing. The contents of both booklets have been approved by a lawyer who specialises in housing law. The booklet also provides summaries of two important Constitutional Court judgments which relate to rent increases and unfair lease terminations (Maphango), and electricity disconnections and notice (Joseph). It also summarises a recent decision of the Rental Housing Tribunal on electricity service charges (Jele).

 

This guide was developed by SERI and the Centre for Urbanism and Built Environment Studies (CUBES) based at Wits University. The law relating to sectional title schemes can be quite confusing. This guide tries to provide a brief description and explanation of the main legal issues that those involved in sectional title schemes should be aware of. This guide is structured in two sections. The first section deals with a number of key questions that are commonly raised by people involved in sectional title schemes. The answers provided are meant to assist sectional title owners, trustees and body corporates to better understand the legal rules that apply to sectional title schemes. The second section lays out how certain disputes and challenges that come up in sectional title schemes should be dealt with.

 

This resource guide aims to provide a simplified yet comprehensive overview of legislation, policy, programmes and practice relating to basic sanitation in South Africa. The guide focuses on access to household sanitation by poor communities. While some progress has been made since 1994 in terms of the provision of basic sanitation, challenges remain in the formulation and implementation of policy by municipalities. The guide does not claim to be an exhaustive analysis of legislation, policy and practice; however aims to outline the legislative and policy framework, highlight key challenges faced by various departments and communities, and provide a tool for those working on sanitation issues in South Africa e.g. social movements, community-based organisations (CBOs), non-governmental organisations (NGOs), lawyers, development practitioners, planners, government officials, academics, scholars etc. This guide was written by Kate Tissington.

This resource guide provides an overview of housing legislation, jurisprudence, policy, programmes and practice in South Africa since 1994. As with other socio-economic rights, the legislative and policy framework created by national government around housing is in fact quite progressive. However, implementation to date has been skewed and unable to address the land, housing and basic services needs of millions of poor South Africans who still lack adequate housing and access to water, sanitation and electricity. The report explicitly focuses on access to housing in the urban context. It provides a simplified yet comprehensive guide to policies, legislation, jurisprudence and practice in relation to urban housing in South Africa, which will hopefully be useful to a wide audience that includes social movements, CBOs, NGOs, lawyers, development practitioners, planners, government officials, academics, scholars etc. This guide was written by Kate Tissington.

 

Making a Living Resource Guides

Traders eThekwiniThis Guide explains the rights of informal traders and the laws and policies that protect them, and gives informal traders practical advice on how to engage with the eThekwini Municipality and its officials. The guide begins by setting out how one can become a registered informal trader. It then sets out the legal relationships between registered informal traders and the Municipality. It then describes the Municipality’s powers in regulating informal trade and sets out what legal steps traders can take when they experience unfair treatment by the Municipality. The guide ends with a section explaining the importance of protecting human rights defenders and a list of useful contact details. The guide is based on an earlier guide that SERI produced for traders in Johannesburg and has been developed in close consultation with street traders operating in eThekwini, drawing directly from their experiences and insights.This guide was written by Nick Budlender and edited by Lauren Royston (SERI Research and Advocacy Director). The guide is also available in IsiZulu. 

This Guide has been written for employers of domestic workers in South Africa. The purpose of this guide is to inform employers of their rights and obligations in the domestic employment relationship according to the law; provide practical advice towards creating a healthy working environment; and to support employers to improve their employment practices. It was written by Kelebogile Khunou (SERI researcher) and Amy Tekié (Izwi co-founder). 

 

COIDA factsheetDomestic workers are now covered by the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of 1993 (COIDA). This law provides for the payment of compensation to employees who suffer injuries or contract diseases while performing their work duties through the Compensation Fund. In the case of a death as a result of a work-related injury or disease, the Fund allows for compensation to the deceased employee’s dependents. This factsheet details the four main types of compensation payments under COIDA and explains how domestic workers can claim from the compensation fund.

 

SERI worked with the Black Sash to produce a factsheet for domestic workers, paralegals and community advice offices to provide them with information about the Mahlangu v Minister of Labour matter, in which domestic workers successfully challenged their exclusion from the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of 1993 (COIDA) previously known as Workmen’s Compensation. The factsheet explains how COIDA works, summarises the facts of the court case and explains the implications of the judgment for domestic workers. The fact sheet explains how COIDA works, summarises the facts of the court case and explains the implications of the judgment for domestic workers. The fact sheet is also available in Shona, Sesotho, IsiXhosa, IsiZulu. 

 

Street trading guidelinesSERI worked with Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO) and other stakeholders to produce these health and legal guidelines for informal trade. This Poster offers graphic guidelines for workers in markets, streets and home shops. They are also available in IsiZulu, English and Afrikaans. 

 

DWRG cover photoDomestic work is one of the largest sources of employment for black women in South Africa, however domestic workers remain one of the most vulnerable occupational groups. Many domestic workers continue to be subjected to exploitative working conditions and disrespectful treatment. Despite the implementation of labour laws and the collective efforts of domestic workers to assert their rights, domestic workers' employment rights are not always respected. SERI developed this user-friendly resource guide to create awareness of the rights of domestic workers and the obligations of employers in terms of the domestic employment relationship. It explains what the law says about domestic workers and gives practical advice on how domestic workers can engage their employers. The guide is also accompanied by six information sheets on leave (also available in isiZulu), wages (also available in isiZulu), the UIF (also available in isiZulu), the CCMA (also available in isiZulu), employment contracts (also available in isiZulu) and the end of the employment relationship (also available in isiZulu). The guide was written by Kelebogile Khunou.

 

traders guidefor webThis guide sets out the rights of informal traders making a living in Johannesburg and the avenues available to ensure those rights are protected. Informal traders make a living in hostile environments, and local governments do not protect the rights of people making a living informally in the same way that they do those working in the formal sector. Despite this, informal traders have found novel ways to hold local authorities to account. If traders are aware of their rights and how to protect them, they are better placed to resist illegal harassment and clamp downs on their businesses. >>It can be downloaded here and should ideally be printed and folded.

 

 

This pamphlet explains the process that a municipality must follow to legally prohibit informal trade in an area, or to relocate informal traders. It outlines what a municipality can do in terms of the Businesses Act 71 of 1991, what the process is that a municipality must follow to restrict or prohibit informal trade in an area, and what can be done to stop the restriction or prohibition of trading in an area. It is important to know about this process so as to ensure that a municipality follows the law, and that those who might be negatively affected are given a chance to participate and articulate their position. This pamphlet was written by Michael Clark.

  • >>It can be downloaded here and should ideally be printed and folded.

 

Expanding Political Space Resource Guides

Students Rights Guide imageSERI, together with partner organisations Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Gun Free South Africa (GFSA) the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF), has produced a set of infographics on the Panel of Experts Report on Policing and Crowd Management. The infographics have been developed to inform members of the public and the media about the contents of the panel report and its key recommendations. More specifically, they provide information about the circumstances the led to the Panel of Experts being established, namely the Marikana massacre of 2012; the different issues the panel examined; what the panel said on issues of professionalisation, demilitarisation, and accountability; what the panel said on protest, the law, and crowd management; and what is needed for the successful and timeous implementation of the report.

 

Students Rights Guide imageThe police are supposed to protect the public from crime and violence, but they sometimes engage in unlawful behaviour such as corruption, brutality, and torture. Holding police accountable for wrongdoing is essential. The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) together with SERI and other partner organisations including the Legal Resources Centre (LRC), the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF), Viewfinder, Corruption Watch, and the Anti-Repression Working Group of the C-19 People's Coalition, have developed a factsheet on police accountability to commemorate Youth Day. This factsheet has combined content from all the partner organisations, and aims to create a centralised knowledge bank with information on police accountability. This factsheet has been developed to help members of the public understand police powers, their rights when encountering police, and their options for reporting abuses of power by the South African Police Service (SAPS). The factsheet is also available in isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sesotho and Afrikaans. 

 

Students Rights Guide imageDuring 2015 and 2016, students on university campuses across South Africa embarked on large-scale, disruptive protests calling for systemic changes to how universities operate and approach education, as well as how academic curricula are structured. Government, university administrators, police and private security often responded to these protests with force in an attempt to shut them down. Universities approached the courts to obtain interdicts preventing students from protesting on campuses. The police used tear gas, stun grenades, water cannons and rubber bullets against protesting students in often disproportionate and unlawful uses of force. This user-friendly resource guide explains students’ rights to protest, as well as students’ rights when they are arrested, detained or charged with a crime during a protest. It aims to create awareness of the rights and obligations of those involved in student protests to encourage university administrators, police and private security officials to respect human rights and mitigate the disproportionate and unlawful use of force. The guide was written by Michael Clark and Tim Fish Hodgson. 

 

Community OrganisersThis guide was developed to assist CBOs to organise effectively in order to facilitate social change in their communities. It draws on the experiences and practices of the South African shackdwellers’ movement Abahlali baseMjondolo (AbM) and examines a number of topics: what is a community organisation, principles of community organisation, establishing a CBO, community meetings, protests and gatherings, education programmes, sustaining a CBO, managing and sharing information, and networking and partnerships. This guide is one of the resources in the Dear Mandela Toolkit, aimed at informing individuals, communities and CBOs of their rights.