There are different laws about conditions of employment. Employees’ terms and conditions of employment may be covered by:

• Centralised collective agreements, like Bargaining Council Agreements, under the Labour Relations Act (where applicable) (See Collective agreements)
• Sectoral Determinations under the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA), or Wage Determinations under the Wage Act (where applicable) (See Sectoral determinations)
• Special exceptions to centralised collective agreements, Sectoral Determinations, or the BCEA, made by the Minister of Employment and Labour (called deregulation) (See Deregulation)
• Workplace-based collective agreements under the BCEA (See Collective agreements)
• An individual agreement between an employee and employer – the contract of employment (See The contract of employment)
• Basic Conditions of Employment Act (See Summary of provisions in the BCEA)
• National MInimum Wage Act (See Minimum wage)

The Merchant Shipping Act covers conditions of employment for employees who are at sea within South Africa’s territorial waters while members of the National Defence Force, the National Intelligence Agency, and the South African Secret Service are covered by different laws. The Occupational Health and Safety Act gives employees rights to health and safety at work. (See The Merchant Shipping Act; See Occupational Health and Safety Act)