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Tag: covid19
ENSafrica | March 2020

With the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19), many businesses have taken the decision to request that employees work from home. To work from home, employees will either be using their own personal devices or company-issued equipment to either access the company network remotely or to transmit data and information through their own personal network. There are a few inherent information security risks that are posed by these arrangements ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

Background Other than hand sanitizer manufacturers, private hospitals and the like which stand to profit from the coronavirus (COVID-19) disaster unfolding, the vast majority of South African companies fall into two groups: those that are hemorrhaging but will ultimately survive, and those who will not ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

At their core, the Regulations in terms of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 issued and brought into operation yesterday, 18 March 2020, outline the responsibilities of all government departments, the release and allocation of resources, and the conditions under which liquor industry may function. In the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic being declared a national state of disaster, the Regulations are intended to contain the spread of the virus ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

Now that South Africa is under lockdown for the next 21 days, as part of an organisation’s business continuity efforts, businesses will, to the extent possible, continue to run remotely. Two common legal issues that arise from remote working are: the electronic signing of agreements and instructions; and whether meetings can take place using technological means. In this article, we touch on both issues ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

Coronavirus: legal update In the context of the Coronavirus outbreak worldwide, business and entrepreneurs are busy developing strategies and practical ways to mitigate and manage the risks associated with disruptions that may be caused as a result of the outbreak ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

Like many other countries worldwide, South Africa went into a 21-day national lockdown on 27 March, in an effort to help slow down the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The lockdown has already had a devastating impact on the economy and on employment in a country that was already in recession. This has already been felt by many in their pockets ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

On Monday, 23 March 2020, the President of South Africa announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown, with effect from midnight on Thursday, 26 March 2020. In brief, all persons in South Africa are prohibited from leaving their homes for the 21-day period, except if specifically exempted to perform an essential service (health care professionals, food distributors etc ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

The Emergency Regulations published under the National Disaster Management Act, 2002 to reduce the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) were understandably, under the circumstances, published in a hurry with a number of scenarios not being thought of and being left to interpretation. One of those is sectional title living ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

In a press release today, 17 March 2020, the Department of Employment and Labour (the “Department”) appealed to employers to use the prescriptions of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 in governing workplaces in relation to the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The Department has implored employers to prepare themselves and their employees as far in advance as possible for potentially worsening outbreak conditions ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

The coronavirus (COVID-19), has presented novel challenges for organisations in all sectors of the economy. Irrespective of the external circumstances faced, organisations are being forced to find a way to ensure that they still remain in business ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

On Monday, 23 March 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a 21-day national lockdown in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, in terms of the Disaster Management Act, 2002. The lockdown will result in all employees (except those performing “essential services”) being confined to their residences and, as a result, being unable to tender services in the “normal” course ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

On 31 March 2020, the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (“DEFF”) published directions (the “Directions”) under the National Disaster Management Act, 2002, to reduce the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19). The purpose of the Directions is to ensure fair processes with respect to certain environmental laws, as a result of the restrictions placed on the movement of people during the lockdown period ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

Following the issuing of what has colloquially been called the “Lockdown Regulations” to reduce the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in South Africa, there has been a hasty scramble for essential services to comply with the provisions of the Regulations and to register on the Essential Services Portal ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which has disrupted lives and continues to wreak havoc on the global economy, has seen a sudden and dramatic shift in the way we live. Previously, uncommon concepts and practices such as social distancing, lockdown, quarantine and self-isolation have now rapidly become part of our daily parlance. Unsurprisingly, in view of the swift rise of death rates associated with the pandemic, many people are being reminded of their own mortality ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

On 23 March 2020, South African President Ramaphosa announced a nationwide lockdown for 21 days with effect from midnight on Thursday, 26 March 2020 as part of government’s integrated measures to prevent and contain the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). The nationwide lockdown will have a cascading effect on the operations of many South African businesses, courts and the regulators (including the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (“B-BBEE”) Commission) ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

The regulations published on 18 March 2020 in terms of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (the “Act”) have been amended to regulate the lockdown announced by President Ramaphosa on 23 March 2020. A new chapter 2 specifically dealing with the lockdown has been inserted into the regulations. We summarise below the most significant provisions contained in chapter 2 ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

On Monday, 30 March 2020, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (“FSCA”) issued a general communication to financial institutions relating to the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on financial institutions and their customers. The circular sets out at a high level the expectations of the FSCA relating to the culture and responsibilities of financial institutions during the crisis. It does not have the force of law ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

Given the fact that many countries are under some form of lockdown as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, organisations that are able to do so, are now working remotely, with video conferencing platforms enabling people to have virtual meetings just like they were face to face. However, there are growing privacy concerns over the use of these platforms, with some in the spotlight for sharing data with Facebook ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

On 6 April 2020, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (“ICASA”) published the Information and Communications Technology (“ICT”) COVID-19 National Disaster Regulations (the "Regulations").   The stated purpose of the Regulations is to prescribe the minimum standards to which all licensee (electronic communication services and broadcasting services) must adhere for the duration of the National State of Disaster ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

In response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the South African Government has implemented various statutory measures to prevent the potential spread of the disease, and to limit, contain and minimise the risk of exposure of persons within the country ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

Is the employer obligated to notify the Principal Inspector of Mines of known cases of COVID-19 in the workforce? In terms of section 11(5B) of the Mine Health and Safety Act, 1996 (the "MHSA"), the employer is required to notify the Principal Inspector of Mines of any occurrence at the mine that results in the illness of any person ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

In light of the first Coronavirus case being confirmed in South Africa yesterday, employers will need to be more stringent in their approach to managing what the World Health Organisation (“WHO”) has declared to be “a global health emergency” in their workplaces. It has been said that false information about COVID-19 (otherwise known as the Coronavirus) is spreading faster than the virus itself ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

Since the declaration of the national state of disaster in South Africa in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, it has been anything but “business as usual” for most professionals. This is equally true for legal practitioners trying to navigate the directives regarding litigation and court process during the national state of disaster ...

ENSafrica | April 2020

The Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy recentlypublishedCoronavirus (COVID-19) related regulations pertaining to some of the prescribed timeframes in the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 (“MPRDA”). The relevant timeframes have been extended by the operation of law by thenumber of days of the ultimate duration of the COVID-19 lockdown period ...

ENSafrica | March 2020

On 15 March 2020, the President of South Africa, in a national address, announced the declaration of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as a "national disaster". Since then, many significant consequential announcements have been made, relating to restrictions on movement, business activity, travel and other matters, all in the interests of preventing an escalation of the national disaster and alleviating, containing and minimising the effects of the national disaster ...

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