The Employment Equity Act is an employment policy that applies to all employers and workers and protects both workers and job seekers from unfair discrimination. It also provides a framework for implementing Affirmative Action. Employment Equity is crucial to aligning your workforce with the South African demographics.
Employment Equity Act
The Employment Equity Amendment Bill was passed on the 1st of January 2025 with many changes for designated employers. Organisations with 50 and more employees are now deemed as designated employers. Organisations with less than 50 employees are deemed non-designated and are exempt from certain Employment Equity requirements.
The changes to the Employment Equity Act have introduced changes to the reporting requirements, new sector targets and compliance measures.
It is important to note that all designated employers need to comply with the following:
- Compulsory 5-year EE plans in line with their specific sector targets for the 4 top occupational levels. The bottom 2 targets are to be in line with the Economically Active Population (EAP) – as per below
- Implementation of Affirmative Actions
- Stricter consultation and reporting requirements
- Increase of EE inspectors to enforce compliance
- Certificate of compliance – valid for 12 month – this certificate will be required for organisations who do work with Government and Organs of the State as well as for tender purposes.
Failing to comply with all requirements can be seen as being non-compliant and land an organisation in the Labour Court and may result in fines as seen below:
| Previous Contravention | Contravention of any provisions of Section 16, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23 |
| No previous contravention | R1 500 000 |
| A previous contravention in respect of the same provision | R1 800 000 |
| A previous contravention within the previous 12 months or 2 previouscontraventions in respect of the same provision within 3 years | R2 100 000 |
| Three (3) previous contraventions in respect of the same provisions within 3 years | R2 400 000 |
| Four previous contraventions in respect of the same provision within three years | R2 700 000 |
VCA can assist your organisation to ensure full compliance is met by:
- Assisting with the structuring of your EE committee
- Training
- Conducting a workforce analysis
- Developing your EE plan
- Annual reporting to the DoEL
- Chair your EE committee meetings and ensure steps are being taken to achieve your numerical goal and address the barriers found within your organisation
- EE file and policies
- Assist with any reviews conducted by the DoEL