Online media briefing: IRR to challenge the amended EEA and draft regulations

The Institute of Race Relations (IRR) will be hosting an online media briefing on Wednesday 28 June at 10h00 on its challenge against the amended Employment Equity Act (EEA) and the Draft Employment Equity Regulations.

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The IRR has been at the forefront in arguing that the EEA and the draft regulations are inconsistent with numerous sections of the Constitution.

In June 2021, Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi called for a more aggressive BEE. The EEA and the draft regulations are exactly that. They allow Minister Nxesi to set racial “numerical targets” to pursue goals “at all levels of the workforce”. For any economic sector that has been identified, the Minister may set numerical targets to ensure equitable representation of suitably qualified people from designated groups “at all occupational levels” in the workplace.

This effectively reintroduces racial no-entry criteria for government tenders, and employers may be delegated the odious “pencil test” duty of second-guessing workers’ racial self-identification.

IRR Campaign Manager Mlondi Mdluli and IRR Head of Campaigns Marius Roodt will discuss the unconstitutionality of the amended EEA and draft Regulations and present the IRR’s alternative policy.

The briefing attendance is limited to 250 people; however, the broadcast will be simulcasted live on the IRR’s Facebook page.