The Democratic Alliance (DA) has accused Employment and Labour Minister Nomakhosazana Meth of misleading Parliament over the extent of consultation on new Employment Equity and broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) regulations.

During a National Council of Provinces sitting last week, Meth defended the Employment Equity Amendment Act (EEAA), insisting that racial "benchmarks" for hiring were not quotas and had been developed through "extensive consultation." The DA rejected this, pointing to contradictions in her statements. According to the DA, the same regulations: "threaten businesses with fines of up to 10% of their annual turnover for non-compliance."

The party cited Business Unity South Africa’s legal challenge against the department, arguing that: "these targets were developed on the fly, often giving employers less than 24 hours' notice of the targets they would have to comment on, and changing sectoral targets without providing supporting data."

"These contradictions expose the central problem,' the DA said: "the ANC refuses to admit that the EEA and B-BBEE legislation is killing jobs while benefiting the rich."

The DA said it has taken Meth to court to overturn what it calls: "unconstitutional amendments" to the Act, and will this week unveil its: "vision for real economic empowerment" aimed at redirecting BEE spending: "away from a small politically connected elite towards the poor and most vulnerable communities."