Date: 11/09/2006
Source: Department of Labour
Title: Mdladlana: Launch of Commission for Employment Equity Annual Report
Launch of the 6th Commission for Employment Equity Annual Report speech given by Minister of Labour Membathisi Mdladlana, Laboria House
Programme Director
Director-General of Labour
Chairperson and members of the Commission for Employment Equity
Government officials
Members of the press
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Allow me to thank the Commission for Employment Equity for its sixth annual report. Employment equity trends from the annual report that have just been outlined by the Chairperson of the Commission are of concern to me, and I am sure to the majority of the population as well. Progress thus far has been very slow.
Although some employers may have made huge strides in implementing employment equity, the overall picture remains bleak. If we continue at this pace we would most probably reach equitable workplaces only in forty to fifty years from now. For example, an increase at top management level of blacks by 2,1% and an increase of women by 4,6% may appear to be relatively good, but this increase averaged over a five year period is actually dismal. What are most disconcerting is the decrease of Black representation by 11,5% and an increase of women by only 0,2% at the Professionally Qualified and Middle Management level.
Another alarming trend is the increase of the representation of people with disabilities from 0,9% in 2001 to 1,8% in 2005. At a glance this illustrates a 100% increase in their representation, but upon closer examination one should realise that this increase is very small in actual numbers.
I am tired of hearing that there is an insufficient pool of suitably qualified people from the designated groups, particularly people with disabilities. The question employers should be asking themselves is what are they doing to ensure that there are a sufficient number of suitably qualified people from the designated groups, especially when employers have enabling legislation such as the Skills Development Act. We must all remember that barriers to employment and the work environment, in most cases, were not there we put them there. We therefore carry the responsibility to remove them.
What I find to be very disturbing in the report is the declining trend in reporting by employers. May I remind designated employers that when they refrain from submitting their employment equity reports, they are in breach of the law? All designated employers are required to consult with their employees, conduct an audit and analysis of their workplaces, prepare an employment equity plan and submit an employment equity report to the Department of Labour.
In order to address the challenges that have been highlighted, my department has developed responses to address them, which includes making inspectors more vigilant on employment equity matters. The Employment Equity (EE) Regulations have been amended to, amongst other things, gather more data and to ensure that employers fully and accurately complete their employment equity reports before submitting them to the department. In fact, may I add, those employers who do not accurately and fully complete their reports before submitting them to the Department would be deemed to have not reported.
My department has also developed an employment equity system that would be in operation for the October 2006 reporting period onwards, which would be able to provide not only an analysis of data from reports received by all employers, but with a separate analysis of data in terms of sectors, Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) and government and non-government employers. This will assist for benchmarking purposes and, most importantly, to identify and verify where the real change is actually taking place. Most probably, the little increase in representivity at the upper occupational levels is mainly due to the positive changes in the Public Service and State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Actually if one were to only home-in on the private sector, the increase or decrease in the representation of the designated groups might be frightening.
A key introduction in my department for this year is the Director-General’s (DG) Review of employment equity at work places. A system has been developed for this purpose. This system equips the department to assess the extent to which designated groups are represented in the various occupational levels at each employer’s workplace. The representation of the designated groups is measured using a numerical analysis model and the progress of employers is rated as either being ‘equitable’, ‘reasonable’ or ‘unacceptable’. Reviews are mainly done on employers whose representation levels are deemed to be ‘unacceptable’ in terms of this model.
Out of the 2 762 reports received in 2005, 2 085 reports were analysed because they were complete and accurate. My department has assessed and ranked only the 2 085 reports using the Numerical Analysis model to determine the level of representation of the designated groups across all occupational levels. Included in this assessment and ranking, 55 were large companies listed at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). As I speak to you today, for the first time, DG reviews are in the process of being conducted on six employers whose representation levels fell in the unacceptable category.
They include:
* Omnia group limited
* Medi-clinic group
* Verimark Holdings (PTY) LTD
* Prism Holdings
* Comair Limited
* Kumba Resources
In addition to the above, my department is also following-up on 1 296 large employers who appear on our database, but did not submit their reports in 2005. A list of these employers has been sent to the provinces for inspection. Included in this list, is the names of 13 large companies listed at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) who failed to submit reports in 2005 as required by the law. Furthermore, I have instructed the labour inspectors to continuously be on the lookout for those culprits who have not reported at all.
I have been advised by the Commission for Employment Equity that they intend issuing awards to employers for their excellent achievement in implementing the Employment Equity Act. These awards are due to take place in August 2007. It would be unfair to condemn all employers for the progress that they are making in implementing the Act. I believe that we all carry the responsibility to recognise and reward those employers who excel in implementing the spirit and the letter of the Act.
Thank you to the Commission for Employment Equity for its hard work, and all of you for being here today
Enquiries:
Mokgadi Pela
Cell: 082 808 2168
E-mail: mokgadi.pela@labour.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Labour
11 September 2006
Source: Department of Labour
Title: Mdladlana: Launch of Commission for Employment Equity Annual Report
Launch of the 6th Commission for Employment Equity Annual Report speech given by Minister of Labour Membathisi Mdladlana, Laboria House
Programme Director
Director-General of Labour
Chairperson and members of the Commission for Employment Equity
Government officials
Members of the press
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Allow me to thank the Commission for Employment Equity for its sixth annual report. Employment equity trends from the annual report that have just been outlined by the Chairperson of the Commission are of concern to me, and I am sure to the majority of the population as well. Progress thus far has been very slow.
Although some employers may have made huge strides in implementing employment equity, the overall picture remains bleak. If we continue at this pace we would most probably reach equitable workplaces only in forty to fifty years from now. For example, an increase at top management level of blacks by 2,1% and an increase of women by 4,6% may appear to be relatively good, but this increase averaged over a five year period is actually dismal. What are most disconcerting is the decrease of Black representation by 11,5% and an increase of women by only 0,2% at the Professionally Qualified and Middle Management level.
Another alarming trend is the increase of the representation of people with disabilities from 0,9% in 2001 to 1,8% in 2005. At a glance this illustrates a 100% increase in their representation, but upon closer examination one should realise that this increase is very small in actual numbers.
I am tired of hearing that there is an insufficient pool of suitably qualified people from the designated groups, particularly people with disabilities. The question employers should be asking themselves is what are they doing to ensure that there are a sufficient number of suitably qualified people from the designated groups, especially when employers have enabling legislation such as the Skills Development Act. We must all remember that barriers to employment and the work environment, in most cases, were not there we put them there. We therefore carry the responsibility to remove them.
What I find to be very disturbing in the report is the declining trend in reporting by employers. May I remind designated employers that when they refrain from submitting their employment equity reports, they are in breach of the law? All designated employers are required to consult with their employees, conduct an audit and analysis of their workplaces, prepare an employment equity plan and submit an employment equity report to the Department of Labour.
In order to address the challenges that have been highlighted, my department has developed responses to address them, which includes making inspectors more vigilant on employment equity matters. The Employment Equity (EE) Regulations have been amended to, amongst other things, gather more data and to ensure that employers fully and accurately complete their employment equity reports before submitting them to the department. In fact, may I add, those employers who do not accurately and fully complete their reports before submitting them to the Department would be deemed to have not reported.
My department has also developed an employment equity system that would be in operation for the October 2006 reporting period onwards, which would be able to provide not only an analysis of data from reports received by all employers, but with a separate analysis of data in terms of sectors, Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) and government and non-government employers. This will assist for benchmarking purposes and, most importantly, to identify and verify where the real change is actually taking place. Most probably, the little increase in representivity at the upper occupational levels is mainly due to the positive changes in the Public Service and State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Actually if one were to only home-in on the private sector, the increase or decrease in the representation of the designated groups might be frightening.
A key introduction in my department for this year is the Director-General’s (DG) Review of employment equity at work places. A system has been developed for this purpose. This system equips the department to assess the extent to which designated groups are represented in the various occupational levels at each employer’s workplace. The representation of the designated groups is measured using a numerical analysis model and the progress of employers is rated as either being ‘equitable’, ‘reasonable’ or ‘unacceptable’. Reviews are mainly done on employers whose representation levels are deemed to be ‘unacceptable’ in terms of this model.
Out of the 2 762 reports received in 2005, 2 085 reports were analysed because they were complete and accurate. My department has assessed and ranked only the 2 085 reports using the Numerical Analysis model to determine the level of representation of the designated groups across all occupational levels. Included in this assessment and ranking, 55 were large companies listed at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). As I speak to you today, for the first time, DG reviews are in the process of being conducted on six employers whose representation levels fell in the unacceptable category.
They include:
* Omnia group limited
* Medi-clinic group
* Verimark Holdings (PTY) LTD
* Prism Holdings
* Comair Limited
* Kumba Resources
In addition to the above, my department is also following-up on 1 296 large employers who appear on our database, but did not submit their reports in 2005. A list of these employers has been sent to the provinces for inspection. Included in this list, is the names of 13 large companies listed at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) who failed to submit reports in 2005 as required by the law. Furthermore, I have instructed the labour inspectors to continuously be on the lookout for those culprits who have not reported at all.
I have been advised by the Commission for Employment Equity that they intend issuing awards to employers for their excellent achievement in implementing the Employment Equity Act. These awards are due to take place in August 2007. It would be unfair to condemn all employers for the progress that they are making in implementing the Act. I believe that we all carry the responsibility to recognise and reward those employers who excel in implementing the spirit and the letter of the Act.
Thank you to the Commission for Employment Equity for its hard work, and all of you for being here today
Enquiries:
Mokgadi Pela
Cell: 082 808 2168
E-mail: mokgadi.pela@labour.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Labour
11 September 2006
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