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Disadvantages Of Designated Groups

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Finding the most disadvantaged individuals within those groups that had been previously disadvantaged is the notion was employed by courts to achieve justice. “Designated groups”, according to the Employment Equity Act is the phrase used to define the previously disadvantaged. It includes the disabled, women, Africans, coloureds, Indians, and Asians. These are the persons who are to benefit from the merits of affirmative action. Noteworthy is the fact that the notion of degrees of disadvantage is not legislated, which implies that affirmative action did not originally intend to generate a hierarchy of the designated groups. “Equitable representation”, however is legislated. This notion, in contrast, was arguably the intended focus of affirmative action; the notion that Africans, for instance, …show more content…

The case law regarding members of designated groups who were denied access despite affirmative action measures is plentiful. Accordingly, Motala v University of Natal illustrates this. This case involved an Indian student who had been denied admission to the university in question. The issue under scrutiny was essentially whether this constituted unfair discrimination. Consequently, the court acknowledges that the Indian population group was indeed one that suffered under apartheid, however, it goes on to state that the struggle of African children in relation to education was far greater. And so, the court concluded that the student’s rejection from the university did not constitute unfair discrimination. This case intricately displays the operation of degrees of disadvantage and offers rich justification as to why such distinction must be made. The case of Minister of Finance v Van Heerden develops this notion further, thereby ensuring thorough and justified application. Respectively, Sachs J infers that within these designated groups

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