The Inspection and Enforcement Services (IES) Unit of the Department of Employment and Labour has revealed a drastic increase in the number of no-complying employers with labour laws during a blitz inspection in the Wholesale and Retail Sector in Rustenburg, North West.

About 28 more notices (contravention, prohibition, and improvement) and 31 compliance orders were issued to non-complying employers during yesterday's (12 March 2024) joint blitz inspection by the Department of Employment and Labour and other law enforcement agencies in Rustenburg.

The North West joint blitz inspections, which started on Monday (11 March 2024), were scheduled to end today (13 March 2024).

The second day inspections also saw an additional six undocumented foreign nationals who have been arrested by the Department of Home Affairs and the South African Police Service officials, with two employers fined and charged for contravening the Employment Services Act of the Department of Employment and Labour.

The Act demands an employer to make sure that a person employed in South Africa from a foreign country should have the relevant work permit and a certain skill that is not found in the country.

According to the North West Provincial Chief Inspector, Mr Chris Sithole, it is still worrying to note that employers are still not complying with the labour laws even after all the efforts by the Department to educate and advise the employers.

“The level of non-compliance here is really worrying; things cannot continue like this. As the Department, we will continue to ensure that those who are not complying with the law are brought to book. We have quite a number of advocacies that we conduct physically through inspections, stakeholder engagements and other mediums such as radio, trying to assist employers and ensure that the country's workforce is protected. Yet, when we do inspections, we always find the opposite. These numbers are demoralising and they compel us to crack the whip even harder," said Sithole.

The blitz inspections are a joint operation by the Department of Employment and Labour in the North West Province, the Department of Home Affairs, the Liquor Board, Consumer Affairs Unit of the North West Department of Economic Development, and the South African Police Service (SAPS).

During yesterday's inspection, one employer was also found with expired goods in stock and was advised to remove them from the shelves and dispose it immediately.

The purpose of blitz inspections are to test the level of compliance with the labour laws such as the Occupational Health and safety Act (OHS), Compensation of Occupational Injuries and Diseases (COIDA), Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA), Unemployment Insurance Act (UIA), Unemployment Insurance Contribution Act (UICA) and the Employment Act.

The inspections also focus on other consumer related legislations in the Wholesale and Retail Sector and the employment of undocumented foreign nationals.

For media enquiries kindly contact:

Botsang Huma

Provincial Communication Officer: North West 

Department of Employment and Labour

Cell    : 082 497 7438

Email : botsang.huma@labour.gov.za​

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