SA Wages Pro

Dismissal Letters

3 min read — Updated February 2026

Legal Grounds for Dismissal

South African law recognises three fair reasons for dismissal:

  1. Misconduct - theft, dishonesty, insubordination, absenteeism, etc.
  2. Incapacity - poor performance or ill health preventing the employee from doing their job.
  3. Operational requirements - retrenchment due to economic, technological, or structural reasons.

Dismissing without following the correct procedure is automatically unfair, even if the reason is valid. Always follow the process.

Dismissal Types in SA Wages Pro

The Termination Wizard supports 10 termination types (resignation, dismissal for misconduct, performance, or operational reasons, retrenchment, end of contract, mutual agreement, retirement, death, and absconding) and guides you through the legal process step by step, including notice periods and final pay calculations.

The Correct Process

  1. Ensure you have followed progressive discipline (warnings first, except for gross misconduct).
  2. Hold a disciplinary hearing and give the employee a chance to respond.
  3. If dismissal is the outcome, use the Termination Wizard to generate the correct letter.
  4. Calculate final pay including any outstanding leave, notice period pay, and pro-rata bonus.
  5. Issue the Certificate of Service.

The Termination Wizard calculates final pay automatically and generates all required documents.

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