Quick Answer What Is a CCMA Dispute and How Does It Work? The CCMA (Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration) is the free state body resolving workplace disputes. An employee refers a dispute (usually within 30 days of dismissal), conciliation tries to settle it, and unresolved matters go to arbitration – where most employers lose on procedure, not facts. What this means in plain language Dismissal law in South Africa has two legs: a fair reason (misconduct, incapacity, operational needs) and a fair procedure (hearing, notice, chance to respond). You need both. A guilty employee dismissed without a hearing can still win at the CCMA. For employers the defence file…