The Employment Equity Amendment Act, No 4 of 2022, together with two sets of EE Regulations, came into effect on 1 January and 15 April last year.
Minister of Employment and Labour Nomakhosazana Meth. Picture: Supplied.
Minister of Employment and Labour Nomakhosazana Meth is pressing forward with the implementation of Employment Equity (EE) Regulations and five-year sectoral numerical targets.
She was buoyed by a Constitutional Court ruling against employer bodies that sought to halt the reforms.
Employer groups lose court battle
The National Employers’ Association of South Africa (Neasa), Sakeliga and others had challenged the transformative legal instruments, arguing they were unconstitutional and unlawful.
But the apex court dismissed their urgent application, clearing the way for government to enforce the new framework.
“In the absence of any court interdict, the department is therefore forging ahead with the implementation of the EE Regulations and the five-year sector numerical EE targets,” Meth said.
The Employment Equity Amendment Act, No 4 of 2022, together with two sets of EE Regulations, came into effect on 1 January and 15 April last year.
What the amendments mean for employers
The law applies to designated employers – those with 50 or more employees – who must set their own annual EE targets in line with sectoral quotas and submit reports against those plans.
The amendments empower the minister to regulate sector-specific numerical targets to ensure equitable representation of suitably qualified people from designated groups.
These include blacks, coloureds and Indians, women across all race groups and people with disabilities.
Small businesses employing between one and 49 people are exempt, allowing them to focus on growth and job creation.
These employers are no longer required to submit EE reports.
Employers are required to align their EE plans with the five-year sectoral targets, but retain flexibility to justify deviations under Section 42(4) of the Employment Equity Act of 1998.
Legal challenges continue
Several legal challenges have been mounted against the minister, the department’s director-general and the Commission for Employment Equity.
Neasa and Sakeliga were first to act, filing an urgent application in the High Court in Pretoria to interdict implementation of the sectoral targets published on 15 April 2025.
The applicants questioned the constitutional validity, lawfulness, consultation process and implementation of the amended framework.
Their case, known as Part A, was dismissed by the high court on 28 August last year.
The court found the consultation process lawful and noted that employers could justify non-compliance.
The Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed their appeal on 13 March this year, ruling there was no reasonable prospect of success.
Undeterred, Neasa and Sakeliga approached the Constitutional Court (ConCourt).
But the court dismissed their application with costs, saying the matter lacked reasonable prospects of success. Importantly, the ConCourt expressed no opinion on Part B, which remains pending.
Compliance certificates linked to state contracts
In Part B, the applicants seek to declare Section 15A of the EE Amendment Act and related provisions unconstitutional, and to set aside the sectoral targets and regulations. The department is opposing this.
The legislation also introduced Section 53 of the EE Act, requiring designated employers to obtain EE Compliance Certificates as a prerequisite for access to state contracts and business with organs of state.
Meth said designated employers are legally obligated to comply fully by aligning their annual EE targets with the five-year sectoral quotas.
“The Employment Equity amendments aim to promote and protect the right of equality and the exercise of true democracy for under represented groups. We are vindicated on our position that there is nothing sinister about the Employment Equity amendments and the five-year sector numerical EE targets,” she said.
The ruling marks a significant victory for government in its drive to transform the labour market.
