The Democratic Alliance (DA) has filed a court application to challenge Section 15A of South Africa’s Employment Equity Amendment Act, which mandates hiring quotas across 18 economic sectors for designated groups, including black people, women, and people with disabilities. The DA argues that the law enforces rigid racial quotas that violate constitutional rights, undermine the economy, and constitute racial exclusion.

DA labour spokesperson Michael Bagraim said the party is taking Minister of Employment and Labour, Nomakhosazana Meth, to the Pretoria High Court on 6 May, contesting the constitutionality and breadth of the minister’s powers under the Act, which came into effect in January 2025. Businesses with more than 50 employees must align with the sector-specific quotas from 1 September 2025 to 31 August 2030 or risk penalties of up to 10% of turnover.

Previously, companies set their own employment equity targets based on their workforce and regional demographics. The new system replaces that flexibility with binding national demographic quotas, which the DA says ignore local realities, business viability, and available skills. Bagraim warned that the quotas threaten jobs, especially for coloured workers in the Western Cape and Indian workers in KwaZulu-Natal.

He emphasised that the quotas are enforceable, not advisory, and criticised their vague legal basis, arguing they grant unchecked power to the minister. The DA’s case focuses on alleged constitutional invalidity and abuse of state authority, asserting that employment equity should be achieved through inclusive economic growth, not through mandatory demographic imposition.