Legislation Governing B-BBEE
There are three important pieces of legislation that control B-BBEE, namely:
Employment Equity Act (1998)
The Employment Equity Act applies to black people, all women and disabled people, in addition, stipulates the requirements for affirmative action to ensure that qualified people from these groups are equitably represented in all occupational categories and levels of a company.
The Act is binding on any business that employs 50 or more staff, or that has an annual turnover of more than R2 million to R25 million (depending on the industry in which you operate).
Skills Development Act (1998) and Skills Development Levy Act (1999)
These provide a framework for improving the skills and employment prospects of black people.
These Acts also make it compulsory for certain employers to contribute a percentage of their payroll (known as the Skills Development Levy) to a fund that can be used to train staff.
The current generic B-BBEE scorecard awards points for skills development, but only for that which is over and above the payment of this levy.
Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act (2000)
This allows any State entity to give preference to black people when awarding contracts. It also aims to boost SME development, create new jobs and promote local enterprises in specific provinces. Currently, the regulations of this Act are based largely on ownership, but this is likely to be revised in order to align it with the B-BBEE Act and Codes.