What counts as insubordination at work?

Your supervisor tells you to do something you think is unfair, unsafe or not your job. You say no, voices are raised, and the next day you receive a charge sheet for "gross insubordination". Or you are the manager, and an employee has ignored your instructions three times this week. Insubordination is one of the most common charges in South African workplaces, and one of the most misused. This guide explains what it means in law, how it differs from insolence and poor performance, which instructions you may lawfully refuse, when dismissal is fair, and what the courts have said.

This guide is part of our Discipline at work: warnings, hearings and dismissal, which links every guide on the topic.

The legal meaning

Insubordination is not defined in the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995. The courts have built the definition. In its classic form, it is a wilful and serious refusal by an employee to obey a lawful and reasonable instruction from the employer. Each word matters.

Wilful means deliberate. An employee who did not hear or understand the instruction, or who honestly thought it had been withdrawn, has not been insubordinate.

Serious means more than a passing complaint. A sigh, a protest followed by compliance, or a request to discuss the instruction is not a refusal.

Lawful and reasonable means the instruction must be one the employer was entitled to give: within the law, within the scope of the job, and not absurd or impossible in the circumstances.

The courts have also accepted a wider form. Insubordination can consist of conduct that is a deliberate and serious challenge to the employer's authority, even without a specific instruction. Openly telling a manager in front of the team that you do not recognise their authority, or organising colleagues to ignore a lawful policy, can fall here.

Insubordination, insolence and poor performance

These three are often confused, and the label matters because each calls for a different response.

Insolence is rudeness, disrespect or contempt: swearing at a supervisor, mocking them, or speaking to them in an offensive way. It can become insubordination when it amounts to an outright challenge to authority, but rudeness on its own is a lesser offence.

Poor performance is a failure to meet a standard because the employee cannot. An employee who tries but fails to finish a task is not refusing anything. Poor performance is a form of incapacity, handled through evaluation, training and guidance, not discipline. Our guide on incapacity versus misconduct explains why charging the wrong one often loses the case.

A simple test: did the employee refuse to do something they were able to do? If yes, it may be insubordination. If they were unable, it is capacity. If they did it, but rudely, it may be insolence.

Instructions you may lawfully refuse

An employee's duty is to obey lawful and reasonable instructions. It follows that some instructions may be refused.

Unlawful instructions. You do not have to falsify records, mislead customers, drive an unroadworthy vehicle, or break any law because a manager told you to. Refusing in these cases is not misconduct, and being disciplined for it may be victimisation.

Seriously unsafe instructions. The Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 places duties on employers to provide a safe workplace, and section 26 forbids victimising employees for exercising rights under that Act. Mineworkers have an express right, under section 23 of the Mine Health and Safety Act 29 of 1996, to leave a working place that with reasonable justification appears to pose a serious danger. A refusal must be genuine and reasonable: a vague discomfort is not serious danger.

Work clearly outside your contract. An employer may adjust working practices, but it may not change your contract on its own. Our guide on whether your employer can change your contract sets out the difference. The line is not always obvious, which is why the Silverton Spraypainters case below matters.

Unagreed overtime. Under section 10 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997, an employer may not require overtime except in terms of an agreement. If you never agreed to overtime, declining it is not insubordination.

In every other case, the safer course is what labour lawyers call "obey now, grieve later": comply with the instruction, then raise your objection through the grievance procedure. Our grievance letter template helps you put it in writing.

What the courts have said

In Motor Industry Staff Association v Silverton Spraypainters and Panelbeaters, reported at (2013) 34 ILJ 1440 (LAC), an estimator at a panel-beating business refused three times to go out and canvass for work when the business was in financial difficulty. He argued it was not his job. The Labour Appeal Court held that the instruction was a change to working practice, not to his terms of employment, and that his dismissal for insubordination was fair. Repeated, deliberate refusal of a reasonable instruction in a crisis was serious.

In Palluci Home Depot (Pty) Ltd v Herskowitz and Others, decided by the Labour Appeal Court on 12 December 2014, the court held that insubordination is not limited to refusing an instruction: a deliberate challenge to authority can be enough. But it also held that acts of insolence and insubordination do not justify dismissal unless they are serious and wilful. The employer had provoked the confrontation, including through an unlawful deduction from the employee's pay, and the dismissal was unfair.

Together these cases show the two questions an arbitrator asks: was the instruction lawful and reasonable, and was the defiance deliberate and serious enough to make the relationship intolerable?

When dismissal is fair

The Code of Good Practice: Dismissal, 2025, in force since 4 September 2025, says in item 7 that an employee may be dismissed for serious misconduct if it makes continuing the employment relationship intolerable, and that this may be a single instance. Item 9 says dismissal is generally appropriate only where the relationship is intolerable, considering factors such as the nature of the job, the seriousness of the misconduct and its effect on the business, whether progressive discipline might prevent a repeat, any acknowledgement of wrongdoing, and the employee's circumstances.

Applied to insubordination:

• a deliberate, repeated or public refusal of a clear, reasonable instruction, especially after a warning of the consequences, may justify dismissal for a first offence
• a once-off refusal followed by compliance, or a refusal in a heated moment, usually calls for a warning
• provocation by the manager, an unclear instruction or a genuine belief that the instruction was unlawful all reduce the seriousness
• consistency matters: under item 10, if others have refused the same instruction without being dismissed, a dismissal is harder to defend

The word "gross" on a charge sheet decides nothing. Employers often charge "gross insubordination" to justify dismissal, but the arbitrator looks at what actually happened. If the facts show an ordinary refusal, the arbitrator may find you guilty of insubordination but conclude that dismissal was too harsh, and order reinstatement or compensation.

For managers, the lesson runs the other way. Give the instruction clearly, preferably in writing. Explain why it is needed if it is unusual. If the employee refuses, warn them of the consequences and give them a chance to reconsider before treating it as serious. A refusal that persists after a clear warning is far easier to defend than one that happened in a single heated exchange.

A fair procedure is still required. Our guide on how a disciplinary hearing works explains what that involves.

If you are charged with insubordination

Ask for the particulars: the exact instruction, who gave it, when, and how you are alleged to have refused. Then build your answer around the elements. Was the instruction actually given and understood? Was it lawful and reasonable? Did you refuse, or did you ask a question or comply late? Was the refusal deliberate and serious? Gather messages, emails and witnesses who heard the exchange. If you refused because the work was unsafe or unlawful, say so clearly and early, and explain why. Our guide on how to prepare for a disciplinary hearing walks through the preparation step by step.

Worked example

This example is illustrative. Lerato is an admin clerk at a Pretoria logistics company earning R14 500 a month. Her manager tells her to backdate three delivery notes so that a client will not claim penalties. She refuses and says it is dishonest. She is charged with gross insubordination.

The instruction was unlawful: backdating documents to avoid a contractual penalty is dishonest and could be fraud. Refusing it is not misconduct. A dismissal would be substantively unfair, and possibly automatically unfair if it followed a protected disclosure. Lerato should write down what happened that day and keep copies of the notes.

Change the facts: Lerato's manager asks her to cover reception for two afternoons while the receptionist is on leave. She refuses, saying it is "not in my job description", and refuses again the next day after a written instruction warning her of disciplinary action. Covering reception for a short period is a reasonable adjustment of working practice within her general role. Her repeated, deliberate refusal is insubordination, and a final written warning is likely to be found fair. Depending on the employer's code and her record, a dismissal might be argued, but it would be at risk if colleagues had declined similar requests without consequence.

What to do

1. When you disagree with an instruction, ask for it in writing and state your concern calmly.
2. If the instruction is unlawful or seriously unsafe, refuse clearly, say why, and record it in writing the same day.
3. Otherwise, comply and then lodge a written grievance.
4. If you are charged, ask for full particulars and the documents the employer relies on.
5. If you are dismissed, refer the dispute to the CCMA within 30 days. Our guide on referring an unfair dismissal to the CCMA explains how.