IMPLEMENTING AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
IN NAMIBIA
A summarised guide to the Affirmative
Action (Employment) Act (Act 29 of 1998) published and distributed by
Namibia Institute for Democracy
Updated 3rd Edition
© April 2000
All rights reserved
Contents by Dr.J.W.F. van Rooyen
NAMIBIA INSTITUTE FOR DEMOCRACY
Namibia Institute for Democracy
53 Independence Avenue
P.O. Box 11956,
Windhoek, Namibia
Tel: (061) 229117/8
Fax: (061) 229119
E-mail: nid@mweb.com.na http://www/iwwn.com.na/nid 1
FOREWORD
The writers of the Namibian Constitution perceived a need for affirmative action as a necessary condition for bringing about change in a previously discriminatory society.
Therefore Article 23(2) addresses the issue of
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The Institute has grasped the opportunity to update and revise the booklet to reflect recent developments in the area and to make the publication even more relevant to its purpose than before. In this regard the NID again wishes to acknowledge the kind assistance and inputs of various organisations and individuals. A special word of appreciation is due to the Employment Equity
Commissioner, Mr V.T. Usiku; the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour,
Mr C. Schlettwein; the Secretary-General of the Namibian Employers '
Federation (NEF), Mr C. Truebody; the Chief Researcher of the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW), Mr H. Jauch; EEC employer representative, Mrs
E. Fahl; and Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) spokesperson,
Mr P.van Wyk. We also wish to acknowledge the kind financial assistance of the
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in support of the project.
This booklet is dedicated to all employers and employees engaged in productive pursuit to promote the economy and social development of this country. May it contribute, in whatever small yet meaningful manner, to assist the social partners in achieving lasting equity and harmony at the workplace.
Theunis Keulder
Executive Director
NAMIBIA INSTITUTE FOR DEMOCRACY
Windhoek, 2 April 2000.
ii
PREFACE
The promulgation of the Affirmative Action (Employment) Act, 1998 (Act
There are many supporters and opponents of Affirmative Action. The focus of Affirmative action is meant to be an attempt at equality throughout society. Every sector in America would be equal and unprejudiced. On the other hand, adopting affirmative action would force many employers to replace hard-working employees with those possibly less qualified simply due to their gender or ethnicity. Throughout history, people have been categorized into different groups. These groupings were based on certain characteristics people shared, whether it was their ethnicity, race, gender, or religion. Society is notorious for distinguishing among different groups and favoring one or two of them. Undoubtedly, this separation of peoples, led to increased tension between various groups. As time progressed, the conflicts intensified, and it became apparent that a change was necessary. So I intend to educate the reader on the origin of Affirmative Action; how it impacted the American society; is it still needed in today’s environment; what are some of the drawbacks or issues that came from implementing Affirmative Action, and finally what is the most beneficial aspect from Affirmative Action. One of the most famous quotes about Affirmative Action comes from President Lyndon Johnson who explained the rationale behind the use of affirmative action to achieve equal opportunity in a 1965 speech: “You do not take a person, who for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring
1.3 Analyse the impact of legislation and policy initiatives on the promotion of equality, diversity and inclusion in own area of responsibility
During the last part of this century, businesses and organizations have heavily relied on affirmative actions laws to ensure equal employment opportunities. The failure of this dependence upon legislation is that is doesn't address the full spectrum of diversity in the workplace (6). Affirmative actions laws have limitations, discriminating against people holding protected-class status such as women, African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans,
Modules Topic Contracts of employment Anti-discrimination Age discrimination Statutory rights and responsibilities Disability discrimination Working hours, rest breaks and holiday entitlement Maternity/Paternity, parental and adoption leave Absence and sickness Data protection and access to personal information Health and safety Contracts of employment Anti-discrimination Procedures and documentation within your organisation Working hours and holiday entitlements Sickness
2. What is meant by affirmative action, and how does it tie in with EEO legislation?
Before, going into this we need to look at the past discriminative policies adopted many companies, responsible for many acts of discrimination against minorities. Menial and low level jobs were offered to certain ethnic and minority groups. Even, woman was denied certain job categories on the ground of strength and their capabilities. This discriminatory policy adopted for so many decade has led to a situation where there cannot be a level playing field without taking certain affirmative action.
The University is committed to perform a wide range of Equalities Action Plan to tackle all forms of inequality and discrimination, in order to create genuine equality of opportunity and promote good relations between people of different groups. In order to fulfil the commitments the
Affirmative action is an idea that greatly benefits one while providing losses to another group. This is a cause-and-effect relationship, a recurring theme that occurs with these attempts for equality. As either a student or worker gets hired for a job for simply in the case of their skin color or certain superfluous traits, a student may either be admitted to a college in which the coursework is too difficult to handle, or for a job where they have no knowledge of what to do. There exist cases in which students
Some people would say that the policy of affirmative action in the workplace only creates positives like diversity and equality in jobs. But this is not the case. Affirmative action may create diversity, but the equality aspect of it is a little shadier. If one job applicant is highly qualified, but does not meet the requirements of affirmative action regulations, such as a white male, they might be passed up for a less qualified applicant, merely because they fit the affirmative action bill by being a minority or other historically underrepresented category of person. This program goes as far as to set quotas for how many minorities, disabled, women, etc. employers have to hire. Along with this, employers must also write and execute an affirmative action plan in order to comply with federal regulations. (Scott) All of these things are intended to create an environment of equality, but they are now actually doing the opposite by excluding qualified whites. Therefore, affirmative action is no longer a sufficient policy to create a diverse and equal workplace.
Affirmative Action remains one of the more complicated and controversial topics dealt with in American society. Affirmative Action is an action or policy designed to protect specific groups who suffer from discrimination, and provide them with programs and special opportunities. These government or private programs were designed to set right historical injustices towards the members of these groups who have suffered things like employment and educational disadvantages from racial discrimination. The goal for these actions are to redress past wrong doings by fixing things like inequalities in employment and pay, as well as increasing opportunities for education. By achieving this, the outcome would restore equal access and opportunity in favor of the members of these groups. These groups generally consist of certain minorities that have suffered from social ills such as slavery and segregation.
Affirmative Action is an outcome of the 1960’s Civil Rights Movement. Its purpose is to provide equal opportunities for members of minority groups and women in education and employment. It is not until 1961 did the term “affirmative action” was first used by President John F. Kennedy. He made it very clear in an Executive Order that directed government have to take “affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.” Since a lot of cooperation still tends to hire white male, by enforcing affirmative action, the number of minority groups and women in the labor force will increase.Affirmative Action helps to eliminate the imbalance in the society and reform the American system. The US Department of Labor describes affirmative action as the banning of discrimination.
Affirmative action has been the topic of debate for many years. It has been controversial because it has been said to be a form of reverse discrimination. This paper will discuss the purpose behind affirmative action, as well as, its various strengths and weaknesses. Also, this paper will look at the following issues surrounding affirmative action such as the incompetency myth ( are companies hiring less qualified people?), the impact on employment (what has changed in the work place?), the impact on women (how have their lives changed?) and the impact on employment law (what documents back up affirmative action?). Lastly, a discussion of affirmative action on an international scale, and what international documents have to say about
According to Raymond A. Noe, affirmative action is an organization’s active effort to find opportunities to hire or promote people in a particular group (Fundamentals of Human Resource Management 68). There are various arguments for and against affirmative action. Some believe that it gives certain groups of people an equal opportunity to find employment where they would otherwise be kicked under the rug. Others believe that even though it creates an opportunity for minority groups, the issue of reverse discrimination comes into play where once predominantly white male jobs offerings go to women and minority groups instead. The topic of affirmative action remains very controversial and
We are entering a new phase in world history - one in which fewer and fewer and fewer workers will be needed to produce the goods and services for the global population...For the whole of the modern era, people's worth has been measured by the market value of their labour...now new ways of defining human worth and social relationships will need to be explored (Rifkin 1996). Life has changed, globalisation and feminism have had a huge impact on the work environment around the world. Technology has also made many jobs redundant. Unemployment has become an issue all
This assignment deals with the Employment Equity Act of 19 October 1998. It covers the workings of the act in terms of equity and affirmative action and how it was implemented in Defy Appliances Ltd in 1999. It also covers some of the obstacles and challenges that were experienced by the company; as well as its success in other companies in South Africa