Pretoria: The Department of Employment and Labour has invited stakeholders and interested parties to comment on the Draft Reviewed Code of Good Practice on the Preparation, Implementation and Monitoring of Employment Equity (EE) Plans. The draft code was published for public comment on Friday, 24 July 2026, with members of the public given 60 days to submit written inputs.

According to South African Government News Agency, the revised code provides guidance to designated employers on preparing, implementing, and monitoring employment equity plans in line with the Employment Equity Act (EEA), No. 55 of 1998, as amended, and its regulations. The code addresses several aspects of employment equity planning, including objectives, application, purpose and rationale, the legal framework, the structure of employment equity plans, the preparation process, implementation and monitoring, as well as reporting requirements.

"The Code provides guidelines to designated employers, those who employ 50 or more employees, and their employees on good practice for the preparation, implementation, and monitoring of an employment equity plan as required by the Employment Equity Act, No. 55 of 1998 (EEA), as amended, and its Regulations," the department said. The guidelines are intended to assist employers and employees in applying employment equity requirements appropriately within their respective workplace environments.

The revised code applies to all designated employers required to prepare, implement, and monitor employment equity plans in consultation with representative trade unions, employees, or employee representatives in terms of the EEA and its regulations. The code is issued in terms of Section 54 of the Employment Equity Act and must be read together with other codes issued under the Act, as well as relevant labour legislation, the Constitution, and the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Act.

The Department of Employment and Labour has encouraged all interested stakeholders to submit written comments during the 60-day consultation period. Comments can be emailed to [email protected] or [email protected].