LABOUR Minister Mildred Oliphant has dismissed reports that 1,3million coloureds and Indians stand to lose their jobs if proposed amendments to the Employment Equity Act become law.
She said on Friday that the claims by the trade union Solidarity that 80 percent of coloureds would lose their jobs in the Western Cape were "unfounded, misleading and mischievous".
"We do not know the basis upon which they arrived at these figures," Oliphant said.
She said the only reason the proposal was placed "on the table" was because employers wanted clarity "on how to implement both regional and national demographics simultaneously".
"It is important that we once again clarify the current status of the law which states that employers must take into consideration 'demographic profile of the national and regional economically active population' while the proposed amendment takes away regional and national to provide the flexibility," she said.
"The consequence of the new proposed amendments is that employers will have flexibility to decide whether to use regional or national demographics."
Oliphant said unions should remember that "this is only a proposal" and if there are "unintended consequences", these should be raised at National Economic Development and Labour Council. She said the statistics the department based its decision on came from Statistics South Africa.
Solidarity's deputy general secretary Dirk Hermann claims that the proposed amendments to the law could amount to "a massive and unfeasible social engineering programme" with nearly a million economically active coloured South Africans in the Western Cape having to earn a living in another province if the proposed amendments are signed into law.
Minister rejects union's claims on coloured job cuts
LABOUR Minister Mildred Oliphant has dismissed reports that 1,3million coloureds and Indians stand to lose their jobs if proposed amendments to the Employment Equity Act become law.
She said on Friday that the claims by the trade union Solidarity that 80 percent of coloureds would lose their jobs in the Western Cape were "unfounded, misleading and mischievous".
"We do not know the basis upon which they arrived at these figures," Oliphant said.
She said the only reason the proposal was placed "on the table" was because employers wanted clarity "on how to implement both regional and national demographics simultaneously".
"It is important that we once again clarify the current status of the law which states that employers must take into consideration 'demographic profile of the national and regional economically active population' while the proposed amendment takes away regional and national to provide the flexibility," she said.
"The consequence of the new proposed amendments is that employers will have flexibility to decide whether to use regional or national demographics."
Oliphant said unions should remember that "this is only a proposal" and if there are "unintended consequences", these should be raised at National Economic Development and Labour Council. She said the statistics the department based its decision on came from Statistics South Africa.
Solidarity's deputy general secretary Dirk Hermann claims that the proposed amendments to the law could amount to "a massive and unfeasible social engineering programme" with nearly a million economically active coloured South Africans in the Western Cape having to earn a living in another province if the proposed amendments are signed into law.
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