Labour dept undertakes employment equity roadshows

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The Department of Employment and Labour’s Employment Equity (EE) Deputy Director, Masilo Lefika, says the revised Employment Equity Act4 (EEA) form requires employers to provide salary differentials between their top and lowest earners.

“In the previous years, we were speaking about equal pay for work of equal value. Now is the time for implementation and reporting,” Lefika said on Tuesday.

He was speaking at the first Employment Equity workshop held in Kimberley on Tuesday.

The department is currently conducting the 2019 Employment Equity Roadshows in the form of workshops throughout the country.

The workshops, which are scheduled from 20 August to 26 September 2019, aim to create awareness on compliance with the Employment Equity Act, share the most current information and help prepare employers to submit full and accurate EE reports online to the department.

This year’s workshops will focus on:

  • EEA4 – an Income Differential Statement. Following the repeal of the form in the regulations, employers will now have to report on remuneration data;
  • International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention on elimination of violence and harassment in the World of Work;
  • Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) presentation on cases of violence, harassment and dispute resolutions.

Held under the theme “Real transformation makes business sense”, the workshops are aimed at employers or heads of organisations, academics, assigned senior managers, consultative forum members, human resource practitioners, trade unions representatives and employees.

For more information and inquiries on EE matters and workshop venues, call 086 010 1018 or visit the department’s website www.labour.gov.za

Violence and Harassment Convention in the pipeline

Meanwhile, department’s Director for Employment Equity, Ntsoaki Mamashela, announced that an International Labour Organisation Convention on violence and harassment in the world of work is on the cards.

The Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 and Violence and Harassment Recommendation, 2019, were adopted by delegates on the final day of the Centenary International Labour Conference held in Geneva in June.

The Convention recognises that violence and harassment in the world of work “can constitute a human rights violation or abuse… is a threat to equal opportunities, is unacceptable and incompatible with decent work”.

It defines violence and harassment as behaviours, practices or threats “that aim at, result in, or are likely to result in physical, psychological, sexual or economic harm”. It also reminds member States that they have a responsibility to promote a “general environment of zero tolerance”.  

The new international labour standard aims to protect workers and employees, irrespective of their contractual status, and includes persons in training, interns and apprentices, workers whose employment has been terminated, volunteers, job seekers and job applicants.

It further recognises that “individuals exercising the authority, duties or responsibilities of an employer” can also be subjected to violence and harassment.

According to the CCMA, many employees still do not report cases when they are sexually abused, harassed, and or discriminated against. – SAnews.gov.za