Labour minister pushes for workplace transformation agenda
THE GOVERNMENT is pushing ahead with speeding up transformation at workplaces by introducing a bill forcing companies to meet sector-specific numerical targets for employment equity.
Last Friday, Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant published the Employment Equity Amendment Bill which is aimed at ensuring the equitable representation of suitably qualified people from designated groups – blacks, women and disabled people.
An executive summary of the bill said transformation had been at a slow pace since the Employment Equity Act was enacted 20 years ago.
It said the Commission for Employment Equity (CEE) reported that the public sector had showed significant progress of transformation as compared to the private sector.
“In top and senior management level, women only account (for) 32.6% and 39% respectively in all positions at these key-decision making levels in the public service.
“Whereas, in the private sector women only account for 21.6% in top management and 32.3% in senior management level,” reads the executive summary.
It also said representation of the disabled accounted for 1% in public sector and 0.9% in the private sector.
“Employers tend to use EAP (economically active populations) distribution as a long- term benchmark for the setting of self-imposed targets. There is no long- to medium-term benchmarks for the setting of minimum target and goals.”
The bill provides for the minister to publish a notice identifying national economic sectors after consulting the relevant sectors and with the advice of the Employment Equity Commission.
The draft bill also provides for employers to submit annual reports to the department and then be issued with certificates of compliance.
However, the bill provides for state contracts to be issued only to companies that have been certified as being in compliance with the legislation.
“An employer attaches a certificate when concluding a contract with the state as conclusive evidence that the employer complies with the relevant chapters of the act,” reads the bill.
The bill has the full backing of the CEE, which in its 2017/2018 annual report noted that lack of equitable representation of designated groups at the top management level did not bode well for the future sustainable economic growth of the country.
CEE chairperson Tabea Kabinde said representation at senior management level still remained appalling for Africans and Coloureds, with the representation of whites and Indians still at more than double and the representation of females at about half their EAP.
“Drastic steps must be taken to develop, recruit and promote persons from these groups at the professionally qualified level,” Kabinde said. DESPITE cutting its election budget for the 2019 elections by almost R10 million, the SABC wants the rural areas to receive more coverage from its television and radio stations.
“What we have planned to do is to intensify our coverage of rural areas, because what we have seen in the past is disproportionate focus on urban areas and voices of urban constituencies,” chief operating officer Chris Maroleng said.
The SABC is mandated to broadcast national and sports events, including the elections, which are not funded by the state, from its own pocket.
Maroleng said it has budgeted R30m for the 2019 elections.