The part people get wrong is not the form. It is the date, and the proof that the employer got a copy.

This guide explains what the referral involves, what happens after you hand it in, and the mistakes that cost people their case before anyone has looked at it. It explains the process generally. It is not advice about your own case.

Before you fill in anything

Three things make the form take fifteen minutes instead of a week.

Your date of dismissal. You have 30 days from the date of dismissal to refer an unfair dismissal. If you are not certain which day that is, read How long do you have to refer a case to the CCMA? first, because the whole referral turns on it.

Your employer's correct legal name. Not the trading name on the door. The name on your payslip or your contract, with the company registration number if you have it. A referral against the wrong entity is a problem that surfaces late and wastes weeks.

Your documents. Your contract, your dismissal letter, any warnings, the notice and outcome of a disciplinary hearing if there was one, and your recent payslips. You do not attach all of it to the referral, but you will need it later and it is easier to gather now.

Step 1: get the form

The referral form for a dismissal dispute is LRA Form 7.11.

You can get it from the CCMA website at ccma.org.za, from any CCMA office, or from a Department of Employment and Labour labour centre. The CCMA has added electronic channels for referrals and the current list is on its website, so check there rather than assuming a particular one is available.

Step 2: fill it in

The form asks for your details, your employer's details, what kind of dispute it is, the date it arose, and what outcome you are asking for. A few fields do more work than the rest.

The nature of the dispute. For a dismissal you are referring an unfair dismissal dispute. Getting this wrong sends your matter down the wrong track.

The date the dispute arose. For a dismissal this is the date of dismissal, not the date you decided to do something about it.

What you want. You are usually asked whether you are seeking reinstatement, re-employment or compensation. You are not locked into a number at this stage, but think about it honestly rather than writing the largest figure you can imagine. What the CCMA can actually order is covered in What compensation can the CCMA award.

Whether you need an interpreter, and which language. Say so on the form. It is normal and it is free.

Con-arb. Con-arb is the ordinary route for misconduct and incapacity dismissals, and it is usually faster: conciliation and arbitration happen in one process, often on the same day. That speed cuts both ways. If conciliation fails, arbitration can start immediately, so you need to arrive prepared to argue your case. If you want time between the two stages, for example to prepare or to arrange representation, you can object in writing, to the CCMA and to your employer, at least seven days before the hearing date, and the stages then run separately. If the dismissal was during probation, the dispute goes the con-arb route and there is no objection. Both routes are legitimate. If you are unsure which suits your case, speak to the CCMA, your union or a labour law practitioner before the objection deadline.

If you are already past 30 days, you also need a condonation application, submitted at the same time. Do not hand in a late referral on its own and hope. See Missed the 30 days? What CCMA condonation actually requires.

Step 3: send a copy to your employer, and keep the proof

This is the step people skip, and it is the one that stops a referral in its tracks.

You have to satisfy the CCMA that a copy of the referral reached the other side. Email, hand delivery with a signature, registered post, or whatever the current rules allow. What matters is that you can show it afterwards.

Keep the evidence, not the intention. A sent email with the attachment visible. A signed and dated acknowledgement. A registered post slip. Screenshot it and save it somewhere that is not only your phone.

Step 4: deliver the form to the CCMA

In person at a CCMA office, at a labour centre, or through whichever electronic channel the CCMA currently offers. Keep your stamped or acknowledged copy. Write the case number down the moment you have one.

There is no fee. The CCMA does not charge you to refer a dispute or to have it conciliated or arbitrated. Your costs are transport, time off, and photocopying.

Step 5: what happens next

The CCMA sets the matter down and notifies both sides of the date, time and venue. Conciliation is meant to happen within 30 days of the referral, though in practice set-down dates depend on the caseload at your office.

Go. A conciliation you do not attend is a conciliation you have effectively given up.

What that day looks like is in What actually happens at CCMA conciliation. If it does not settle, the next stage is arbitration.

Who may represent you

You do not need a lawyer to refer, and at conciliation lawyers are not allowed for either side. If you belong to a registered trade union, a member, office bearer or official of your union may represent you at the CCMA. If you are not a union member, you present your own case at conciliation, and commissioners are used to working with unrepresented workers. A co-worker or a friend cannot represent you. At arbitration, legal representation becomes possible, but for misconduct and incapacity dismissals it is restricted: a lawyer is allowed only if the commissioner and all the other parties agree, or if the commissioner decides it would be unreasonable to expect you to deal with the dispute without one, looking at the legal questions involved, how complex the case is, the public interest, and how evenly matched the two sides are.

The five mistakes that cost people the most

  1. The wrong date on the form, usually the day of the hearing or the day the final payment came in, rather than the date of dismissal.
  2. The wrong employer name, taken from the signage rather than the payslip.
  3. No proof of service, because the copy was sent and nobody kept the record.
  4. A late referral with no condonation application, which is dealt with as lateness before anyone considers whether the dismissal was fair.
  5. Not turning up to the set-down date.

None of these are about the strength of your case. All of them are avoidable in an afternoon.

What referring does not do

Referring a dispute does not make it a good one. The form is free and anyone can hand one in, which is exactly why a referral on its own tells you nothing about where you stand.

That is a separate question and it is worth answering early, before you take unpaid days off work and travel to a hearing. FairCase gives you a written read on whether an unfair dismissal case is strong or weak, including when the honest answer is that it is weak. The deadline check is free either way.

Start with What to do in the first 48 hours after being dismissed if this happened to you this week.