Connie Mulder: Workplace quotas and economic chaos - ANC’s risky employment equity push

In this in-depth interview, Alec Hogg speaks with Connie Mulder, head of the Solidarity Research Institute, about the ANC’s latest employment equity regulations. Mulder explains how the government's racial targets for workplace demographics are not only impractical but potentially damaging to South Africa’s economy. He reveals the hidden costs of compliance, including forced staff replacements and looming fines, and questions the long-term viability of such policies. With data-driven insights and legal context, Mulder warns of the unintended consequences and urges a national conversation on meaningful economic redress and sustainable growth. A critical discussion on policy, ideology, and South Africa’s future..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here.The auditorium doors will open for BNIC#2 on 10 September 2025 in Hermanus. For more information and tickets, click here..Watch here.Listen here.BizNews Reporter .The African National Congress (ANC) has doubled down on its policy of demographic engineering - this time taking it into the heart of the workplace. In a recent interview with Alec Hogg of BizNews.com, Connie Mulder, head of the Solidarity Research Institute, outlined the serious implications of the ANC’s new employment equity targets, calling them “absurd, unworkable, and potentially catastrophic.”At the centre of the debate are the recently published "sectoral targets" issued by the Minister of Labour. These targets prescribe specific racial compositions that companies must meet within their workforce, down to percentages for black, coloured, Indian, and white employees. As Mulder explains, these aren't mere guidelines; they are now backed by legislation that includes fines of up to 10% of annual turnover for non-compliance starting from September 1, 2025.“These regulations force companies to meet race-based quotas that are mathematically and practically impossible,” Mulder said. He pointed out that in some sectors, such as skilled artisans in electricity supply, the industry would have to grow by more than 300% just to meet the demographic targets without laying off existing staff. With South Africa's GDP barely registering growth at 0.1%, such expansion is not remotely feasible.The alternative, according to Mulder, is workforce replacement based on race and gender. He estimates that nearly 70,000 white males and over 112,000 women - of all races - would need to be replaced to meet the new targets across 18 economic sectors. Particularly affected are sectors like healthcare and education, where women are heavily represented. "We’re talking about replacing one in three female nurses and two out of five female teachers with men," said Mulder. "That’s not just impractical - it’s absurd."The ideological rigidity of the policy is also cause for concern. A clause in the government’s 2024 regulations states that once a company reaches the required demographic targets, it “may never regress.” In other words, if an employee from a designated group resigns, they must be replaced by someone of the same group - regardless of merit, qualification, or context. This, Mulder argues, transforms what was once pitched as a temporary corrective measure into a system of permanent demographic enforcement.According to Mulder, Solidarity has already initiated legal action, accusing the Department of Labour of contempt of court for ignoring a previously agreed-upon settlement. The organisation is also challenging the rationality of the new regulations in court, arguing that they create a hostile and impractical environment for employers, especially in sectors where demographic realities do not match the targets.Beyond litigation, Mulder calls for a broader national discussion on the meaning and future of economic redress in South Africa. “We’re not saying do nothing about poverty or inequality,” he noted. “But these policies are enriching a small elite while increasing black unemployment, poverty, and inequality. That’s not transformation - that’s failure.”Hogg pressed Mulder on what alternatives exist. Mulder was clear: the only path forward is economic growth. “You can’t redistribute your way into prosperity. Replacing every white male in the workforce with unemployed black individuals would only reduce black unemployment from 36.9% to 36.6%. It’s a negligible effect. What we need is policies that grow the economy and create jobs - not bean-counting exercises from Pretoria.”As South Africa transitions into a Government of National Unity (GNU), Solidarity hopes that non-ANC partners will resist the ANC’s push for what Mulder calls "governing by ambush." He urges business leaders and citizens alike to engage, speak out, and demand a rational, inclusive approach to employment equity - one that focuses on skills, growth, and opportunity rather than rigid racial quotas.

Connie Mulder: Workplace quotas and economic chaos - ANC’s risky employment equity push

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