Employment Legislation Bill Changes: Protection or Pressure for South African Businesses?

Foreign nationals were housed in camps near the Epping repatriation center in Cape Town because the closure of the facility left them without support.

Long-Term Migration Issues

South Africa has long ignored its border security. For over thirty years, the country has faced the problem of illegal immigration, forcing civil organizations to take responsibility for repatriating undocumented foreigners. This complex situation has led to criticism of South Africa at the continental level.

Societal and Governmental Reaction

By law, only government officials have the authority to enforce immigration legislation. Nevertheless, many citizens take to the streets in protest, expressing dissatisfaction with what they perceive as a crisis caused by the presence of illegal immigrants. Although vandalism is condemned, critics argue that the South African government should be held accountable for its insufficient approach over many years.

It is estimated that more than three million undocumented immigrants reside in the country due to porous borders. The government may have had the resources to deport these individuals for years, but its efforts have been inadequate given the scale of the problem, which is exacerbated by allegations of corruption in the police and the Department of Home Affairs. Only recently is it being observed that the crisis is beginning to be addressed with due urgency.

International Response and Appeals

Various nations have been forced to evacuate their citizens from South Africa under pressure from anti-immigration groups. While some countries struggle with their citizens stranded in transit camps, Ghana organized charter flights for the repatriation of its nationals. Furthermore, the West African nation advised its youth political groups to refrain from any retaliatory actions.

Recognizing the issue of illegal immigration, Ghana's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, James Gyakye Kwesi, recently called on African countries to support South Africa in resolving this crisis. There are approximately 200 South African businesses and registered companies operating in Ghana. Conflict over this issue is likely to cause both countries more economic damage than benefit.

Economic Ties and the Continent's Future

Despite over 100 South African companies investing significant funds in Nigeria, the West African country threatened countermeasures against South Africans due to the consequences of immigration. Business proponents should not exchange their interests for human rights, but revenge is not the solution—much is at stake. It must be recognized that continued hostility will result in no winners.

In early 2026, South African investors invested about $1 billion in Nigeria. African governments must view the continental immigration crisis as a starting point, focusing collective efforts on finding solutions and determining necessary steps.

In connection with the illegal immigration crisis in South Africa, which involves the relocation of repatriated foreign nationals to the Old Drive-In site in Durban under heavy guard, the article's author argues that employers who exploited these unregistered migrants bear significant responsibility for the situation.

Social inequality and the lives of the poor

The discussion about illegal immigration initially revealed deep class divisions. A large part of the activism appears to be a struggle between the lower classes and those who criticize them from a position of comfort. Although many middle-class commentators condemn anti-immigration movements, they often ignore the reasons why many poor residents of South Africa feel more indignation about this issue.

For many low-income communities, the consequences of illegal immigration are not an abstract political discussion but an integral part of daily life. Years of poverty have already created complex conditions for them: children are forced to compete for limited spots in overcrowded public schools, and people queue before dawn at clinics and public hospitals hoping to receive medical care due to facility overload and lack of resources.

Living conditions and infrastructure

Many unregistered migrants settle in informal settlements where rent is lower. In some cases, temporary structures are illegally built on floodplains or abandoned private land, increasing safety risks and further straining the already fragile infrastructure. Illegal connections to the power grid lead to network overload, forcing municipalities to impose load restrictions to prevent transformer explosions. Poor sanitary conditions and insufficient hygiene facilities create serious public health threats that residents face daily.

It is easier to dismiss these frustrations when living in a suburb isolated from such realities and discussing migration over coffee and croissants at a local cafe. However, one must ask who has benefited most from illegal immigration.

Exploitation of cheap labor

For decades, many households, both Black and middle-class white, relied on unregistered migrants as cheap labor. Domestic workers, gardeners, and factory workers often received pay significantly below the legally established minimum wage. Some earned only around 1,500 rand per month, sending part of their earnings home through money transfer services like Mpesa. Their unregistered status made them vulnerable, preventing them from demanding better working conditions or higher wages for fear of deportation.

The irony became particularly evident when citizens from Malawi were discovered in Sherwood. Many self-proclaimed defenders of justice criticized activists opposing illegal immigration, yet they overlooked the unpleasant truth that many of these migrants worked in homes and businesses as low-paid laborers.

Consequences of abandoning workers

When authorities began moving unregistered migrants to the Durban Drive-In site to facilitate repatriation, the police warned that hiring or sheltering undocumented foreigners is illegal and can result in fines of up to 10,000 rand. Nevertheless, some employers refused to release workers because they continued to depend on their labor.

Perhaps the clearest example of this contradiction was the incident after the June 30th protest marches, when some employers, according to reports, drove to the now-disbanded Durban Drive-In repatriation center and left their domestic workers there in the middle of winter. After years of benefiting from their labor, they simply discarded them and left.

A call for accountability

These same employers easily condemn government failures while ignoring their own role in undermining labor legislation. Exploiting unregistered workers, underpaying domestic staff, and creating an illegal labor market are not harmless acts. They are offenses that perpetuate exploitation and depress wages for everyone.

Giving out blankets and soup bowls after years of using illegal hiring is not charity. It is a show of sympathy that does little to eliminate the exploitation that necessitated such gestures in the first place.

Debates on migration in South Africa will remain incomplete as long as the focus is solely on undocumented migrants or on government failures. Those who knowingly hire unregistered workers, ignore labor laws, and profit from exploitation must also be held accountable. They are not bystanders in this crisis; they are active participants.

If the country is serious about solving the illegal immigration problem, accountability must extend beyond borders. It must include employers who support the underground labor market while blaming others for the existence of this problem. Until this happens, the discussion will continue to overlook one of the most significant factors of the problem—the middle class.

The organization Free SA has launched a campaign urging Parliament to amend the Constitution of South Africa to set a limit of 20 cabinet ministers. This initiative is based on the assertion that the current structure is costly and inefficient.

The Problem with the Current Government Structure

According to Free SA, the president's unrestricted freedom to appoint ministers from Members of Parliament has led to one of the largest and most expensive executive structures in the world. The proposed change involves setting an upper limit on the number of cabinet ministers to no more than twenty.

The organization emphasizes that South Africa's shift towards coalition politics makes constitutional guarantees even more vital. Free SA believes that large cabinets increase public spending through ministerial salaries, support staff, official residences, security measures, vehicles, and administrative structures, and often lead to overlapping mandates, which weakens accountability.

Analysis of the Current Government Composition

The discussion comes amid close scrutiny of the executive branch of the Government of National Unity (GNU), which currently comprises 34 ministers and 43 deputy ministers, totaling 77 members. Paul Marts, director of Free SA, believes that the executive branch has become excessively large and expensive.

Marts stated that the goal of the proposal is to create a compact yet functional executive branch, and 20 people should be considered the target figure. He added that they previously argued it was possible to run the entire executive branch with only 26 people: a president, a deputy president, 12 ministers, and 12 deputy ministers. Recognizing the potential instability from such a reduction, they propose 20 people, which would provide sufficient space for the incumbent president.

Financial Aspects and Comparison with Other Countries

Marts sharply criticized the size and cost of the current executive branch, noting that South Africa has one of the most bloated and expensive cabinets globally. The current GNU composition of 77 people costs taxpayers over 1 billion rand annually for salaries, allowances, and VIP protection. He characterized this structure as prioritizing quantity over quality, patronage over efficiency, and bureaucracy over results.

According to Marts, ministerial salaries alone demonstrate the scale of public expenditure on political figures: each minister receives nearly 2.7 million rand per year, and their deputies receive 2.2 million rand. He contrasted these amounts with the socio-economic reality of ordinary South Africans, pointing out that the minimum wage in the country is about 4,500 rand per month, meaning one minister earns more in a year than a minimum-wage worker does in over 50 years.

Free SA argues that reducing the Cabinet to 20 ministers and 20 deputy ministers would save approximately 91 million rand annually just on salaries. However, the organization insists that real savings will come from reducing overlapping departments, support staff, housing, travel budgets, communication teams, and security measures.

A key element of the Free SA campaign is comparing South Africa's executive branch with the executive bodies of larger economies. Marts noted that the scale of the cabinet is difficult to justify, especially when compared to BRICS partners. He cited examples: Brazil, with a population of over 214 million, has 37 ministers; India, with a population of over 1.4 billion, has 30; and China, the world's second-largest economy, is governed by a more modest 37 ministers. The USA, whose GDP is almost 60 times that of South Africa, has a cabinet of only 24 people. Furthermore, Germany, with a population of about 84 million, operates with 16 federal ministers.

Counterarguments and Restructuring Proposals

Critics of constitutional limits often argue that government responsibilities expand over time, requiring new portfolios and ministries. Marts rejects this argument, asserting that the purpose of the limit is to stimulate adaptation, not expansion. He explained that new functions do not necessarily require new ministries; they can be reorganized, merged into existing portfolios, delegated to provinces, or administered through agencies and departments.

Free SA believes that the limitation will force the government to focus on efficiency rather than creating new political positions when new problems arise. Previously, the organization proposed significant government restructuring, including transferring functions such as basic education, healthcare, policing, and labor relations to the provinces; abolishing several ministries; and merging overlapping departments. Proposed mergers include combining Electricity and Energy, Water and Sanitation, Transport and Land Reform into a Ministry of Public Works and Infrastructure, and Correctional Services into the Ministry of Justice. They also propose 'one deputy for every minister.'

Overall Goal of the Reforms

For Free SA, this issue ultimately boils down to restoring public trust in the government. The proposal aims to improve government functioning in three ways: first, by cutting spending on political officials and administrative overhead; second, by increasing accountability through reduced overlapping duties; and third, by improving policy implementation by decreasing bureaucracy and optimizing decision-making. The overall objective is to create a state that spends more resources on service delivery and less on maintaining structures of political patronage. Marts concluded that ordinary South African citizens benefit when the government becomes more compact, accountable, and efficient.