Employment
Equity
Known as the Rainbow Nation, South Africa is one of the most colourfully complex and diverse countries in the world. No other country is as heterogeneous, and our eleven official languages are a testament of this fact. Of the total economically active population size, over 90% are black (African, Indian, Coloured). Female workers make up slightly less than half off these statistics.
However, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is not always divided up fairly among these demographics – female workers earn approximately 30% less, on average than their male counterparts. According to Stats SA, the earnings distribution starkly depicts the heavily racialised inequality in the South African labour market.
To help bring awareness and conscious planning around improvement, the Employment Equity Act applies to black people, all women, and disabled people. It stipulates the requirements for affirmative action to ensure that qualified people from these groups are equitably represented in all occupational categories and levels of a company. The EE Act makes provisions for measurement to highlight areas that need focused progress.
Employment Equity can add enormous value to an organisation, provided it is understood and implemented correctly. Dot Connectors helps organisations to identify how EE can create value for them at a strategic level, and how to turn it into a driver of human capital development within the business. We also ensure that clients are compliant with the EE Act and that the EE points contribute towards other transformation requirements such as skills development and broad-based black empowerment (BBBEE).
What is it?
- To ensure that everyone enjoys equal opportunity and fair treatment in the workplace, the Employment Equity Act, No. 55 of 1998 was enacted into law.
- The Employment Equity Act is the law that promotes equity in the workplace, ensures that all employees receive equal opportunities, and that employees are treated fairly by their employers. The law protects you from unfair treatment and any form of discrimination.
- A designated employer must submit a report to the Director General of the Department
- of Employment and Labour once a year on the first working day of October if done manually, or by 15 January of the following year in the case of online reporting.
Why is it important?
The purpose of the Act is to achieve equity in the workplace, by:
- Promoting equal opportunity and fair treatment in employment through the elimination of unfair discrimination.
- Implementing affirmative action measures to redress the disadvantages in employment experienced by designated groups to ensure their equitable representation in all occupational categories and levels in the workforce.
- Equal work for equal pay – eliminating unfair salary discrimination.
- Inclusion and integration are key to the survival of our economy.
- A more diverse workforce will add to the company’s culture and performance.
- Your company will have a competitive edge in the industry.
- It impacts your BEE scorecard.
What do you have to do to comply?
- Have a democratically elected, representative committee set up.
- Appoint an EE Manager.
- Do an EEA12 analysis (analysis on your company’s workforce movement in the past) and come up with strategies and goals for your EEA13 (EE Plan).
- The EEA12 and EEA13 must be consulted with the Committee before sign-off.
- Meet quarterly each year to track the progress of the plan.
- Submit a report to the Department of Labour (DEL) based on this progress by 15 January each year.
What happens if you don’t submit a report?
- You may receive heavy fines for non-compliance – R1.5m or 2% of your turnover, whichever is the greatest. Note that fines also increase as the amount of contraventions increase.
- If you have not submitted a report to the DEL by 15 January each year, you will score zero points for Employment Equity on your BEE scorecard.
Who needs to
submit a report?
The act is binding on any business that employs 50 or more staff, OR if they have an annual turnover more than indicated in the Schedule below (per industry):
| Sector or subsectors in accordance with the Standard Industrial Classification | Total annual turnover |
| Agriculture | R6,00 m |
| Mining and Quarrying | R22,50 m |
| Manufacturing | R30,00 m |
| Electricity, Gas and Water | R30,00 m |
| Construction | R15,00 m |
| Retail and Motor Trade and Repair Services | R45,00 m |
| Wholesale Trade, Commercial Agents and Allied Services | R75,00 m |
| Catering, Accommodation and other Trade | R15,00 m |
| Transport, Storage and Communications | R30,00 m |
| Finance and Business Services | R30,00 m |
| Community, Special and Personal Services | R15,00 m |