President Cyril Ramaphosa has defended the country’s recently implemented Employment Equity Amendment Act
Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Media
President Cyril Ramaphosa has defended the country’s recently implemented Employment Equity Amendment Act (EEAA), stating that it is necessary to address the injustices of the past.
Last month, the government began implementing new employment equity targets under the amended Act. These targets apply to 18 key sectors and require certain employers, particularly those with senior roles, to align their workforce with the country’s racial and gender demographics.
However, this move has been met with fierce resistance from some businesses and several political parties, including the Democratic Alliance (DA), who argue that the Act will violate the rights of South Africans.
The DA has also taken the amended Act to court, stating: "These quotas will destroy jobs, undermine the economy, and violate the constitutional rights of all South Africans."
The party further argued that Minister Nomakhosazana Meth’s powers under Section 15A are "vague, unchecked, and dangerously broad."
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Ramaphosa defended the Act, insisting that it was necessary to address the country’s persistent inequality.
"They must go and read our constitution very clearly and very carefully because what we are seeking to do is to transform our country and to ensure that what apartheid bequeathed us is something that we correct. So the Employment Equity Act is aimed at doing that," Ramaphosa said.
He acknowledged that the DA has the right to challenge the legislation in court. However, he urged the party to clarify its opposition to the Act, which he believes is designed to rectify the legacy of apartheid.
"But as with any other organisation, they are entitled to go to court, and I haven’t heard their full complaint. I would like them to come to me and explain to me what grudge they have about transformation, about advancing the interests and rights of those people whom apartheid suppressed. The Act is about correcting what apartheid did to our country," Ramaphosa added.
IOL previously reported that the National Employers’ Association of South Africa (NEASA) and Afrikaans business organisation Sakeliga also jointly announced their decision to take legal action against the newly amended legislation.
mthobisi.nozulela@iol.co.za
IOL Business