The Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 defines an employee as
"any person, excluding an independent contractor who works
for another person or for the State.....". It is clear
from this definition that "independent contractors" have
been specifically distinguished from "employees". Shortly
after the introduction of the Labour Relations Act in 1996, and
seemingly in light of this distinction drawn between independent
contractors on the one hand and employees on the other, many
businesses sought to avoid the complications of formal employment
relationships by opting for "independent contractor" type
arrangements. Typically one saw a surge of persons generally being
presented with pro forma contracts that purported to transform them
into self-employed enterprises. In a number of instances, some
employers were even so bold as to transform, literally overnight, a
significant portion of their existing employee complement into
"independent service providers" who would be paid
