All employers and employees need to take account of the recent amendments to the Employment Equity Act.

 

The requirements to prepare employment equity plans and to implement specified affirmative action measures will (with a few specific exceptions) only apply to you if you either –

On the other hand, all employers are bound by prohibitions against any form of “unfair discrimination” i.e. discrimination based directly or indirectly on any one of the generally prohibited grounds of “race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, family responsibility, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, HIV status, conscience, belief, political opinion, culture, language, birth or [this last bit is new] any other arbitrary ground”.

An employer is now prohibited from differentiating between employees in regard to “terms and conditions of employment” (which would include remuneration, working conditions etc) in circumstances where –

• The employees (the comparison extends only to employees of the same employer) perform “the same or substantially the same work or work of equal value”, and
  
  
• The differentiation is based on any of the generally prohibited grounds listed above.  

Contraventions of the Act carry greatly increased penalties, with first offenders risking a fine of the greater of R1,5m (tripled from the former maximum of R500,000) or 2% of turnover.

We will all die. We have limited control over what will eventually kill us and when, but there is something that we can do now, whilst we are still physically and mentally capable of doing so, to express our wishes as to how we die.  Specifically, we can give instructions now as to what medical treatment we want to be given at the end.  For many people a nightmare scenario is to be kept artificially alive, quite possibly in pain and distress, long after your medical condition becomes hopeless and long after you have lost the ability to express your wishes for yourself.  If you are one of those people, consider executing a Living Will - but do it now, while you still can.

A Living Will is your personal “advance health care directive”, executed by you before you lose the ability to do so, in which you tell doctors, hospitals and your loved ones what end-of-life medical treatment you do and do not consent to.  For many people it will be an expression of your wish to be allowed to die naturally, with the support of only such medical measures as will relieve your distress and pain without pointlessly prolonging your life.  It will speak for you when – and only when - you are no longer capable of doing so yourself.  

It will be easier for your family and doctor to make the necessary decisions on your behalf if you have previously run through with them any “What if …..?” scenarios that particularly concern you (or them), and if your wishes in each such scenario are clearly expressed and understood.   Most importantly, make sure that everyone knows exactly where your Living Will is – they may need to find it in a hurry. 

Note that a Living Will isn’t a “will” in the normal sense of a “Last Will and Testament” regulating the distribution of assets to your heirs after you die.  You certainly do need to execute such a will right now if you don’t already have one, but a “Living Will” is a very different thing.  You need both.  

This isn’t the same as euthanasia or “assisted suicide”, which remain unlawful in South Africa, as well as running foul of many people’s moral/cultural/religious objections.  But whereas euthanasia and assisted suicide involve an active intervention to terminate life, a typical Living Will merely expresses your wish that nature be allowed to take its course when the time comes.

Although the enforceability of your Living Will cannot be guaranteed (the legal principles involved are yet to be tested in our courts), at the very least it should make it easier for your loved ones (and the medical professionals charged with caring for you at the end) to take hard decisions if and when they need to be taken.

If you are unlucky enough to end up in a dispute with SARS, following the correct procedures – and in particular complying with the required time-frames – is critical.  Be aware of new regulations specifying detailed procedures for objections, appeals, ADR (alternative dispute resolution), Tax Court applications etc.

This is a specialised field and the stakes are high - take advice from a registered tax practitioner in any doubt.

It isn’t easy these days for a new graduate to find suitable employment, particularly with a CV that is devoid of relevant work experience. 

Equally, many SMEs would benefit from being able to access the skills, youthful energy and creativity of a new graduate.  But they balk at taking on the risk and cost of permanently employing someone unknown and untested.

The win-win answer for both unemployed graduates and SMEs may be a fixed-term internship.  See for example the “GAP” Graduate Asset Programme (at www.gogap.co.za) which connects businesses with graduate interns via a free matching portal.  The site also provides a wealth of information and resources – for more, download their online pamphlet “Grab a Graduate – Get the intern advantage!” from their Business Tools page at www.gogap.co.za/toolshed/download/111.