South African National Defence Union v Minister of Defence & Another, an important case in South African labour law, concerned the question of whether or not it was constitutional to prohibit members of the armed forces from participating in public protest action, and from joining trade unions.
In a majority judgement, delivered by Justice O'Regan, the Constitutional Court decided that prohibiting participation in acts of public protest violated the right to freedom of expression of Defence Force members.
The question, therefore, was this: Does the legislation's blanket ban on trade-union activity for such workers limit the right enshrined in section 36 of the Constitution?
The applicant argued that a trade union could function and further the interests of its members without participating in strike action.
The court decided that the order of invalidity in respect of trade-union membership would only come into force three months from the date of judgement.
Secondly, since the Constitution guarantees freedom of association and fair labour practices, soldiers are entitled to form a body such as SANDU to look after their employment interests.