No country for white men

Sakeliga CEO Piet le Roux said that white men are a group in South Africa which may not be mentioned and are essentially categorised with Zimbabweans.

He shared this view during a discussion about South Africa’s new Employment Equity Regulations, which introduced sectoral numerical targets in the workplace.

It established racial and gender-based numerical targets for businesses across four occupational levels within 18 industries in South Africa.

Each category includes three percentage targets: one for non-white males, one for females, and one for disability-only.

Able-bodied white males are not explicitly mentioned and are treated as the residual category after the designated groups are accounted for.

The new Employment Equity Regulations took effect in September 2025, and the targets must be achieved over the next five years.

Le Roux slated the regulation, saying that it clearly targets white males, as there are no targets for this group.

“The name that must not be named, that category of human that isn’t even allowed to have a name, that is the white men who remain alongside foreigners,” he said.

“So, white men and Zimbabweans. You are equally restricted on how many of them you are allowed to appoint.”

He argued that the employment equity regulations and demographic targets are state race laws that dictate hiring based on colour, gender, and disability rather than merit.

He added that this situation is absurd and not how business works. “We are not going to accept it,” he said.

Le Roux argued that business owners should feel safe ignoring quota demands because the requirements are economically impossible.

National Employers’ Association of South Africa (NEASA) CEO Gerhard Papenfus agreed with Sakelige on this issue.

“NEASA and its members will strictly hire based on merit and will never make affirmative appointments,” he said.