TRC Final Report

Volume 1

Chapter 13

Subsection 3

1856-1910 Masters and Servants Acts:

W These Acts, which had been passed between 1856 and 1904 in the four territories, remained in force after Union. They made it a criminal offence to breach the contract of employment. Desertion, insolence, drunkenness, negligence and strikes were also criminal offences. Theoretically these laws applied to all races, but the courts held that the laws were applicable only to unskilled work, which was performed mostly by black people (Dugard 1978: 85; Horrell 1978: 6).

Repealed by s 51 of the Second General Law Amendment Act No 94 of 1974

1911 Mines and Works Act No 12:

W Permitted the granting of certificates of competency for a number of skilled mining occupations to whites and coloureds only.

Repealed by s 20 of the Mines and Works Amendment Act No 27 of 1956

1913 Admission of Persons to the Union Regulation Act No 22:

U Required Indians to obtain permission to travel from one province to another. Commenced: 1 August 1913

Repealed by s 57 of the Admission of Persons to the Union Regulation Act 59 of 1972

1913 Black Land Act No 27:

L Prohibited blacks from owning or renting land outside designated reserves (approximately 7 per cent of land in the country). Commenced: 19 June 1913

Repealed by s 1 of the Abolition of Racially Based Land Measures Act No 108 of 1991

1923 Native (Black) Urban Areas Act No 21:

U Made each local authority responsible for the blacks in its area. ‘Native advisory boards’ regulated influx control and removed ‘surplus’ people, i.e. those who were not employed in the area. The country was divided into prescribed (urban) and non- prescribed areas, movement between the two being strictly controlled (Horrell 1978: 2-3). This Act was consolidated by the 1945 Blacks (Urban Areas) Consolidation Act. Assent gained: 14 June 1923; commencement date not found

Repealed by the Blacks (Urban Areas) Consolidation Act No 25 of 1945

1924 Industrial Conciliation Act No 11:

W Provided for job reservation. Excluded blacks from membership of registered trade unions, prohibited registration of black trade unions. Commenced: 8 April 1924

Repealed by s 86 of the Industrial Conciliation Act No 36 of 1937

1926 Mines and Works Amendment Act No 25: W Re-enacted the 1911 Mines and Works Act.

Repealed by s 20 of the Mines and Works Amendment Act No 27 of 1956

1927 Immorality Act No 5:

A Extra-marital intercourse between whites and blacks prohibited (Horrell 1978: 8). (Extended in 1950 to include coloureds and Asians.) Commenced: 30 September 1927

Repealed by s 23 of Sexual Offences Act No 23 of 1957