Educated by Church of Scotland missionaries, Kadalie completed teacher training in 1913 graduating from Livingstonia.
[3] After a short stint of primary school teaching, Kadalie joined the stream of Nyasalanders seeking employment in neighbouring South Africa in early 1915.
In 1918, he settled in Cape Town, where he befriended Arthur F. Batty, an emerging trade unionist and political activist.
In December 1919, Kadalie gained prominence with the success of the dockworkers' strike, which prevented the export of all goods through Cape Town Harbour facilities.
[citation needed] In 1921, Kadalie wed Johanna "Molly" Davidson (née Isaacs), a widow with two children from her first marriage.