Seven companies have failed to develop Namibian talent for senior positions after not appointing qualified Namibian understudies to facilitate skills transfer from expatriates.
The affected employers are the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (Namfisa), Oshakati Town Council, Nova Nam Group, City Lodge Hotels trading as Town Lodge Windhoek, Nutam Operations, AB InBev Namibia and Outapi Town Council.
The Employment Equity Commission (EEC) found these employers non-complaint with the affirmative action (AA) provisions.
The employers also failed to obtain an exemption or prior approval from labour minister Fillemon Immanuel, as required by the Affirmative Action (Employment) Act.
Employment equity commissioner Otniel Podewiltz revealed this during the review panel hearings held in Windhoek from 24 to 25 June.
“The panel found that the disapproved reports did not meet the requirements of the act due to one or more compliance shortcomings identified during the hearings,” he says.
He says the review panel issued final orders disapproving the respective AA reports.
The review panel heard reports from 11 employers.
Heads of institutions, chairpersons of affirmative action committees and review officers appeared before the panel to respond to concerns raised during the review process.
Podewiltz says the employers failed to consult employees or their designated representatives during the preparation, implementation, revision and monitoring of their AA plans, as well as during the compilation of the AA reports, as required by the Act.
Podewiltz says consultation is a mandatory legal requirement and a key principle of the AA process.
He added that employers whose AA reports are disapproved are regarded as non-compliant with the act and may, upon conviction by a competent court, face a fine, imprisonment or both.
The commission also establishes that the employers failed to correct shortcomings previously identified during earlier EEC reviews despite being given opportunities to do so.
“The commission emphasises that these requirements are not procedural formalities but fundamental obligations intended to ensure meaningful implementation of affirmative action measures and to promote equal employment opportunities in Namibia,” Podewiltz says.
Labour expert Herbert Jauch said the findings were unacceptable nearly three decades after the law came into force.
“It is inexcusable. The law was passed 28 years ago and employers have had ample time to comply with their legal obligations. To have seven employers, including two town councils, still falling short of the legal requirements is unacceptable,” he says.
Oshakati Town Council councilor Jerobeam Ndaamohamba says they have not yet been briefed on the rejection of the council’s AA report and would only comment once the chief executive officer presents the outcome of the EEC review panel hearing.
Meanwhile, four employers were granted compliance certificates after their AA reports were approved. They are Bon Okapuka Crusher CC, Benz Building Supplies, Nkasa Security Services CC and Tristone Business Trust.
