The Democratic Alliance (DA) has condemned the Employment Equity Amendment Bill, which it says will set racial quotas to resurrect job reservation and racial group areas.

The party’s latest critique of the amendments come as a result of Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi’s inability to provide definitive responses to questions regarding the potential consequences of the amendments for specific race groups during an interview with the SABC.

The DA has raised its concerns over the possible banning of specific race groups from employment where the target for each race group has been met. Further, it has denounced the notion that companies stand to lose access to State contracts and being fined up to 10% of their annual turnover should they fail to adhere to the new employment targets.

“The ANC’s race law will be particularly devastating for coloured and Indian South Africans, with quotas set at 0.0% for these groups in various sectors and provinces. However, research shows that, in order to comply with the ANC Race Quota Act, over 600 000 South Africans from all backgrounds will need to be replaced in their existing jobs because they have the ‘wrong skin colour’,” said DA leader John Steenhuisen.

The party believes that the sentiments expressed by Nxesi during the SABC interview are in contradiction with the agreement his department reached with trade union Solidarity, determining that a more nuanced approach should be administered when employing and dismissing people. 

“Nxesi’s utterances have removed all doubt that the Employment Equity Amendment Act is entirely built on race quotas that will regulate the employment of South Africans based on the colour of their skin,” Steenhuisen said.

The DA has asserted that it will move forward with court proceedings to declare the new employment targets unconstitutional.