Bargaining Councils are permanent structures. They are made up of representatives of employers on the one hand and of trade unions on the other. The Labour Relations Act sets out conditions for setting up Bargaining Councils. The two parties to a Bargaining Council negotiate together to make a Bargaining Council Agreement which is reported in the Government Gazette.

A Bargaining Council may ask the Minister of Labour in writing to extend a collective agreement to any non-parties to the agreement, who are within the ’scope’ of the council.

If there is no Bargaining Council in a sector, unions or employer organisations can apply to establish a Statutory Council under the Labour Relations Act. For a Statutory Council to be introduced, the unions in that sector must represent 30% or more of employees in the sector, and the employers’ organisation must represent 30% or more of employers in the sector. Statutory Councils can negotiate education and training, benefit funds and dispute resolution in the sector. In Statutory Councils, employers are not forced to negotiate over wages and conditions of employment.

A Statutory Council may become a Bargaining Council later. At present only three Statutory Councils have been created: they are the Statutory Council of the Printing, Newspaper and Packaging Industry of South Africa; the Statutory Council for the Fast Food, Restaurant, Catering and Allied Trades (SCFFRCAT) and the Statutory Council for the Squid and Related Fisheries of South Africa.