Employment Equity

The Department of Labour does random inspections to check on EE compliance.  They turn up at your gate requesting proof of EE compliance within a 21 day period – you have to provide evidence in a file and even deliver at their offices.  Their letter is standard – they want you to provide proof of:

1. appointment of an Employment Equity Manager.
2. an employment equity committee, with minutes, agenda and signed attendance registers covering twelve months;
3. an analysis of any barriers to employment equity;
4. a copy of your employment equity plan;
5. a copy of your past three employment equity reports;
6. reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities in the workplace;
7. HIV and AIDs policy.

Your employment equity plan can be for a period not less than 1 year and not greater than 5 years.  EE reports must be submitted annually – manually by 1^st working day of October or electronically by mid-January of the following year.   The Employment Equity Amendment Act effective from 1 August 2014 has defined designated groups as black people, women and people with disability who are citizens by birth or descent or who became citizens by naturalisation before 27 April 1994 or after 26 April 1994 but were precluded by apartheid policies.  The fines for non-compliance have been increased hugely.

See the Department of Labour website for more details – www.labour.gov.za.