IRR Webinar: Conscientious Objection to BEE

In a webinar on Monday 8 December 2025, the Institute of Race Relations will publish a report by Gabriel Crouse on conscientious objection to BEE in labour law, specifically after the September 2025 race regulations came into place under the Employment Equity Act (EEA).

Key points covered in the report are:

• Race regulations directly harm people from all eight officially designated race-gender pairs: black females; black males; coloured females; coloured males; Indian females; Indian males; white females; white males;
• Conscientious objectors refuse to racially classify themselves at work because they object on principle of non-racialism to the EEA’s procrustean system;
• In particular, non-racial conscientious objectors never want to get a job over someone else due to that other person being from an “over-represented” race;
• “Everyone has the right to freedom of conscience” according to the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, which right has been clarified by the courts to include conscientious objection against laws that establish an impossible choice;
• Employees and employers face impossible choices under the EEA, and its regulations;
• Hundreds of thousands of South Africans have indicated a preference not to self-classify by race, according to Stats SA.

Webinar details:

Date: Monday 8 December 2025

Time: 10:00 – 11:00

Speakers:

Gabriel Crouse, IRR Fellow

Terence Corrigan, IRR Projects and Publications Manager

Register here: https://streamyard.com/watch/cmQXGSShUKMA

Media contact: Gabriel Crouse, IRR Fellow Tel: 082 510 0360 Email: gabriel@irrlegal.org.za

Media enquiries:

Anneke Burns

IRR Public Relations

+27 71 423 0079

anneke@abpr.co.za