Public Administration and Management
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Browsing Public Administration and Management by Subject "Affirmative action programs -- South Africa"
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Item Open Access Developing a model for successful implementation of affirmative action in the South African public service(University of the Free State, 1998) Sikakane, Buyiswa Hope; Bekker, J. C. O.𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒉 During the apartheid era, the South African government introduced and enforced discriminatory policies giving unfair advantage to white people who enjoyed all the privileges. The 1994 national elections meant the demise of an authoritarian government and heralded a transformation process to a democratic, non-racial and non-sexist society where human rights are provided for in the constitution. The new government has introduced affirmative action in order to eliminate employment discrimination and to promote occupational advancement of disadvantaged groups, thus increasing their representativeness in managerial positions. Affirmative action is a topical subject in contemporary South Africa with some groups, especially those who are likely to benefit from the affirming process supporting it, while those who are likely to part with the privileges that they have enjoyed for decades, strenuously rejecting it. However, it has to be borne in mind that affirmative action is a process and not an event. In countries like the United States of America (USA) where affirmative action was first introduced many years ago, it is still not a success story. It needs careful planning and monitoring throughout its implementation in order to identify areas in the process that need to be adjusted or amended. Affirmative action should not be confused with retribution where white people are being punished for the privileges they enjoyed. It does not mean that white employees should be removed from their positions and be replaced by blacks as this may precipitate racial tension and bitterness. Affirmative action requires training and development of members from disadvantaged backgrounds, so that they are ready to move up the occupational ladder. They should take an active part in their own development. The culture of entitlement which plagues the minds of historically disadvantaged groups should be eradicated. They should not think that being beneficiaries of affirmative action entitles them to managerial positions without the necessary qualifications and skills. Each public organization should provide opportunities for training and development of disadvantaged groups, like study leave, financial assistance and on-the-job training. Academic institutions should adjust their curricula to suit the needs of public organizations. Commitment of top management, employees and unions is one of the important ingredients of affirmative action so that all stakeholders may cooperate in devising strategies for successful implementation of affirmative action programme. The culture and mindset of the workplace should change. There should be a change of perceptions and attitudes. It is necessary to depart from the racist belief that anything that is African is inferior. What is needed is appreciation and acceptance of the cultural differences among employees which can contribute towards the effectiveness and productivity of a public organization. The caliber of employees should be considered in order to avoid tokenism and lowering standards. Where the disadvantaged background has deprived some people with potential of certain qualifications and experience, employees who have been selected would be trained in order to unlock their potential. A public organization should, where possible, employ the services of an affirmative action officer or a senior manager who should be assigned the duties of an affirmative action officer. Such an officer should preferably be a member of disadvantaged groups who would command respect and credibility within an organization and be responsible for the day-to-day issues concerning affirmative action. He / she should work with an affirmative action steering committee which should consist of a cross-section of staff with equal representation from all stakeholders. Specific programmes should be developed to eliminate discrimination in all human resource activities like recruitment, selection, promotion, training and development and evaluation. There should be mechanisms to deal with grievances and disputes regarding alleged discrimination. ___________________________________________________________________