This article reviews and compares the employment and labor laws of three countries-US, South Africa, and Ghana. The methodology employed is a qualitative review of each countries employment and labor laws that are centered on collective bargaining, employment discrimination and other workplace standards, unemployment compensation, pensions, workplace safety, and workers compensation. Even though, the three countries have laws covering various areas of employer/employee relationships, perusal of the various countries' laws reveals there are considerable differences between the three countries with respect to the importance of labor market institutions and the role they play in determining the terms of employment. (C) 2006 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.