A verbal deal is still a contract
There is a myth that without paperwork there's 'no contract' and therefore no obligations. The opposite is true: the moment a worker starts working for agreed pay, an employment contract exists — written or not — and every BCEA right attaches. The worker is owed at least R30.23 an hour, paid leave, proper notice and (over 24 hours a month) UIF, exactly as if you'd signed a document.
But the law requires writing anyway
Section 29 of the BCEA places a separate duty on the employer to supply written particulars of employment — the pay, hours, leave, duties and notice — at the start of employment. So relying on a verbal deal isn't a clever shortcut; it's a breach of that duty. The written contract doesn't 'create' the obligations (the verbal deal already did) — it records them, as the law says you must.
Why writing protects you most
Without a written record, a dispute becomes one person's word against the other's — over the agreed wage, the hours, who promised what leave, or the notice. At the CCMA, the absence of written particulars tends to count against the employer, who carried the legal duty to provide them. A clear written contract is the single best protection against an expensive, drawn-out disagreement.
Turning a verbal arrangement into a written one
If you've been employing someone on a handshake, you don't have to start over — just put the existing terms in writing now. Set out the wage, hours, days, duties, leave and notice you already agreed, give the worker a copy, and keep one. Our free contract tool produces a compliant document in minutes. Doing this protects both sides and brings you into line with section 29.