Johannesburg - The Employment Commission has found that very few women occupy top positions in companies.
Commission for Employment Equity (CEE) chairperson, Tabea Kabinde, said she was concerned about the lack of progress in getting more women into senior positions.
She said men comprised 54.5% of senior management and women 45.5%.
She said this was a one percentage point increase each year.
Video: Kamogelo Moichela/IOL
Kabinde spoke at the 23rd CEE Annual Report launch and handover at Emperor's Palace, Kempton Park on Friday. The report was handed over to Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi.
The CEE report showed a lack of transformation progress in the country.
The report also revealed that the white population group was still at the top of the list in terms of managerial positions. It also showed that women continued to be the lowest-ranked group.
According to the report from top management, whites account for 62.9%, followed by Africans at 16.9%, Indians at 11.2%, coloureds at 6.1%, and foreign nationals at 3%.
“This is although Africans constitute 80% of the national economically active population (NEAP), followed by coloureds at 9.3%, whites at 8%, and lastly, Indians at 2.7%,” Kabinde said.
Video: Kamogelo Moichela
Supporting the CEE chairperson, Nxesi said he was disappointed with the pace of transformation as it was nothing to boast about.
However, he said he was perturbed that instead of commenting on the document that is open for public participation, politicians rather used it as a propaganda tool, making specific mentions that coloureds and Indians were disadvantaged by the apartheid system. He added that the regress should not be used as a negative tool, but participation in developing it.
“I am perturbed by the way some politicians have maliciously racialised the whole concept of employment equity to divide the population.
“I also want to dispel false claims that South Africa stands to lose thousands of jobs from coloureds and Indians as they get dismissed to make way for employers to achieve targets. The law will not allow that to happen. These scare tactics and bizarre claims by politicians should be seen for what they are,” Nxesi said.
He stated that they were hard at work to change the narrative of the crisis. This would allow women to have a better chance of getting top positions.
The CEE said it was disappointed about the slow transformation and that women were also not tagged in top positions.
kamogelo.moichela@inl.co.za
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