If your business “calls people in” when demand spikes (retail peak hours, hospitality weekends, security standby shifts, event staff, seasonal packing, etc.), you’re operating in a space government is trying to regulate much more tightly.
In February 2026, the Minister published the Labour Law Amendment Bill, 2025 for public comment. One of the biggest practical changes for employers who rely on flexible scheduling is a proposed new section 9B in the BCEA aimed at employees working under “on-call”, “zero-hours”, “if-and-when”, and min-max style arrangements.
What problem is the Bill trying to fix?
The “perpetual availability” trap is common in vulnerable work. Employees are expected to keep their time open “just in case” they are needed — but the employer carries very little risk when shifts are cancelled last minute. The Bill shifts some of that risk back onto the employer by requiring predictability, written boundaries, and financial consequences for short-notice cancellations.
The 3 big obligations employers must plan for
If the Bill becomes law in its current form, employers using these arrangements will need to set and record the rules of flexible work in writing, including:
- Maximum hours
You’ll need a written cap so employees know the outer limit of what they can be required to work in a period. - Availability periods / availability windows
You’ll need to define when the employee must be available, so availability is finite and not “always on”. - Notice periods (for reporting and cancellation)
The Bill proposes that employers must specify the notice period for calling someone in and the notice period for cancelling a shift.
The headline change: “Cancellation pay”
The practical bite of the proposed s9B is this:
If you cancel work without giving the contractually required notice, the employee must be paid for the cancelled hours.
In other words, the flexibility will not be free anymore.
What this means for employers in the real world
This is not just a contract update — it’s an operational upgrade.
You’ll likely need:
- Better demand forecasting (so you don’t schedule “just in case”).
- A clearer roster/scheduling process with time-stamped messages.
- Stronger line-manager discipline (because one supervisor’s last-minute WhatsApp cancellations can become a cost and a dispute).
The Bill’s goal is to reduce income unpredictability and bring on-call work closer to a “structured” employment model.
A practical compliance checklist (start now, even though it’s still proposed)
1) Audit your workforce
- Who is truly “on call”?
- Who has irregular hours without a clear written structure?
2) Decide your availability model
Examples:
- Weekday windows only (e.g., Mon–Fri 16:00–21:00)
- Weekend windows only
- Rotating standby windows (fair distribution)
3) Set your notice rules
- Minimum notice to report for duty
- Minimum notice to cancel
- What counts as “notice” (SMS / roster app / email) and who may issue it
4) Rebuild contracts
A flexible arrangement must stop being “informal flexibility” and become a written system.
5) Train managers
Most disputes won’t come from the contract — they’ll come from inconsistent enforcement and poor communication.
