The African National Congress (ANC) has criticised the Democratic Alliance (DA) as “anti-transformative” after the DA approached the courts to challenge recent amendments to the Employment Equity Act. The DA argues that the amendments could enforce race-based employment quotas, which they claim are unconstitutional and harmful to businesses.
Speaking to VOC’s NewsBeat, Lauren Salt, Executive in the Employment Law Department at ENSAfrica, clarified the implications of the amended Act:
“Smaller employers will no longer be affected. If you have fewer than 50 employees, you are no longer required to comply with the affirmative action measures outlined in the Employment Equity Act,” she explained.
“However, the introduction of sectoral targets will certainly impact employers in those sectors now subject to five-year transformation goals.”
Salt also addressed concerns about skills shortages in certain sectors, where employers may struggle to meet these targets.
“The Act makes provision for employers who cannot meet sector targets. They are allowed to justify their position, and the Department of Employment and Labour will assess these reasons to determine if they are justifiable under the circumstances.”
She added that challenges may arise due to the broad nature of sector targets:
“There may be very specific challenges within sub-sectors that the department will need to assess on a case-by-case basis.”
Listen to the full interview below:
VOC News
Photo: Pixabay
