Employers have until Wednesday (15 January) to submit their annual 2024 Employment Equity (EE) reports.

Although President Cyril Ramaphosa in November 2024 signed the proclamation notice giving effect to the start date (as 1 January 2025) on the implementation of the Employment Equity (EE) Amendment Act, No 4 of 2022 – employers are expected to use EE legislation that predates the 2022 amendments. 

The deadline for employers to submit 2024 Reports (EEA2 & EEA4 forms) is 15 January 2025 at midnight. The Employment Equity reporting season for both manual and online opened on 1 September 2024. For manual reporting the period closed on 1 October 2024.  

The Employment Equity Amendment Act, No 4 of 2022 was assented into law by the President on 6 April 2023 and published in Government Gazette on 14 April 2023. The implication of this signing now means that small businesses (those employing less than 50) are exempt from developing EE plans and submitting EE reports to the Department of Employment and Labour.

The main objectives of these EE Amendments include the following:

• To reduce the regulatory burden for small employers, i.e. those employers that employ from 1 to 49 employees will be excluded from complying with the provisions of Chapter III of the EEA;

• To empower the Minister to regulate the sector specific numerical EE targets; and

• To promulgate Section 53 to enable the issuing of EE compliance certificates as a prerequisite for access to contracts for doing business with any organ of the state.

According to the 24 ^th Commission for Employment Equity (CEE) Report for 2023-2024 financial year during 2023 employment equity reporting cycle - 28 015 employment equity reports were submitted by designated employers, which included 7 382 213 employees. According to CEE Report this reflects an increase of 1.7 % of reports received and 2.3% of employees covered from 2021 to 2023.

The submission of annual employment equity report is prescribed in accordance with the Employment Equity Act of 1998.

The purpose of Employment Equity Act is to promote equal opportunity and fair treatment in employment through the elimination of unfair discrimination, implementing affirmative action measures to redress the disadvantages in employment experienced by designated groups and to ensure their equitable representation in all occupational levels in the workforce.

A submitted EE report/plan must contain the prescribed information and must be signed by the Chief Executive Officer of the designated employer. 

The EE legislation gives powers to a labour inspector to enforce the implementation of the EE Act. Failure to submit an EE report is an offence punishable by a fine. Any employer unable to file a report must notify the Director-General in writing if it is unable to report as contemplated in the Act and give reasons.

CEE is a statutory body established in terms of section 28 of the Employment Equity Act to advise Minister of Employment and Labour on matters pertaining to advancement of EE Act.

For media inquiries, kindly contact:

Sabelo Mali

Departmental Acting Spokesperson

082 729 5804/  Sabelo.Mali@labour.gov.za   

-ENDS-

Issued by: Department of Employment and Labour

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