1008639682__20260525__0 The Labour Appeal Court has ruled against the Moses Kotane Institute for gender discrimination in its CEO recruitment process.
Image: File
The Moses Kotane Institute, a non-profit educational entity based in Durban, received a scathing judgment this week from the Labour Appeal Court after it found that the organisation had unfairly discriminated against a qualified male applicant for a senior financial management position on the basis of gender.
Although the male applicant more than adequately met the job requirements and achieved the highest score during the interview process, he was not appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) on a five-year contract.
Instead, a female candidate who ranked third during the interview process and who did not possess the required educational qualifications was appointed.
The Institute is a KwaZulu-Natal provincial government agency dedicated to driving economic growth and development through research, innovation and skills training.
It emerged during proceedings that the Institute had no employment equity plan or policy in place at the time of the appointment process.
According to the Institute, the selection panel and its executives were under pressure from the provincial government, described as its shareholder, to improve gender representivity within its all-male three-member executive management team. For that reason, they decided to appoint a woman to the CEO position.
The court subsequently ruled that the recruitment process for the CEO position was tainted by bias and led to the appointment of an unqualified candidate, raising critical questions about employment equity practices in South Africa.
The crux of the case related to the recruitment process for the five-year CEO position, which stipulated that candidates were required to possess specific qualifications, including a postgraduate accounting qualification, notably a BCompt Honours degree, completion of articles toward registration as a Chartered Accountant, and a minimum of eight years’ relevant experience, five of which had to be at senior management level.
The male candidate, whose identity is known to the publication, is a chartered accountant and certified fraud examiner who achieved the highest ranking from the selection panel.
During proceedings, it emerged that the selection panel and the Institute’s executives were under pressure from the provincial government to improve gender diversity, and that the male candidate was excluded from appointment solely because of his gender.
The court’s findings exposed the Institute’s lack of an affirmative action plan at the time the decision was taken, rendering its justification for the appointment not only weak but also discriminatory.
The dispute arose after the Institute introduced a requirement that the successful candidate had to be a woman from KwaZulu-Natal after the interview process had already been completed.
The Labour Court had noted that such ad hoc adaptations aimed at achieving gender representation could not constitute lawful affirmative action without a pre-existing policy in place, describing the decision as irrational and arbitrary.
The ruling not only rejected the Institute’s reliance on affirmative action as a valid defence, but also ordered the payment of damages amounting to R4,523,921 to the disadvantaged male candidate.
Legal expert Nonkosi Mlanjeni described the ruling as significant in reinforcing the principles of fair recruitment practices while highlighting ongoing challenges surrounding gender equality in the workplace.
“This ruling serves as a reminder that while the push for diversity in leadership roles was essential, it must not overshadow the importance of merit and qualifications in professional appointments.
“The court’s view aligns with broader constitutional mandates that ensure all candidates are considered equally based on their professional capabilities rather than gender, reinforcing that fair treatment is essential for everyone in the competitive job market,” she said.
The Institute’s spokesperson, Kamvalethu Xhelithole, said: “At this stage, the Moses Kotane Research Institute has no comment on the matter.”
DAILY NEWS