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Gender bill 'unrealistic': Cape Chamber
According to the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill is a waste of time and simply impossible to implement. This is because the bill is aimed at ensuring 50% representation for women in all decision-making structures in government and private entities.
"It is simply not possible to force departments and companies to fill half of the top positions with women at this time, as the bill requires," president of the chamber Janine Myburgh said in a statement, reports The Sowetan.
"It is time parliament stopped wasting time on unrealistic legislation like the Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill and dealt with the real problems of the country such as the economy and unemployment among the youth."
Why is filling top positions with women such an impossibility?
Have a look at these SA statistics:
- A total of 64.9% of the SA population aged between 15 and 64 is female, and
- 55.5% of all students enrolled into the tertiary institutions in 2007 were female.
If women are outnumbering men in terms of the general population and university enrolments then surely this makes the aim of increasing female representation across private and public institutions less of an impossibility and more of an eventual certainty?
Madam president, I ask that you please show a little more faith in womankind.
Frew Murdoch is the assistant editor of HR Pulse. She is currently completing the last semester of her BA degree in Communications and English. "I stumbled across your review of our Ethics Guide published 28 June 2012 and wish to thank you for the positive and complimentary comments made – this was a lovely surprise and most rewarding. I will certainly pass this on to all co-authors of the Guide."
Christine Botha, co-author of 'Ethics in HR Management: A guide for HR professionals and line managers', had this to say:
