# Regulatory Compliance Category > BEE and Employment Equity Forum >  Government to lower BEE revenue threshold...

## anakin

http://www.iol.co.za/business/busine...haul-1.1009857




> Businesses with revenues below R5m a year are not required to complete a scorecard.
> 
> Zungu said: What does it do to the deepening of BEE when most of the qualifying small enterprises can say Well, were not interested in ownership or management control? Most enterprises in that category are not women-owned or black-owned. And they still get the highest rating because they are exempt from that requirement.
> 
> The council is examining whether to lower the revenue threshold and prescribe some criteria as a bare minimum.


What do you guys think? Isn't it racist? Apartheid was not my fault and now they are trying to lower the revenue threshold from the current R 5-million. 

The government should just invest into scholarships/bursaries instead so the growth can be more fulfilling instead of robbing from us.

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## Justloadit

Totally agree, any small business with a single owner is probably employing 3,4 or more 'Black" employees, so what more must the owner now do? Give up his right to earn a living?

I think it is time for a class action in the constitutional court, about minor ethnic group rights of protection. As a 'white' person we get, shunted to the end of an employment list, effectively making 'white's' unemployable, and the only way to make a living is to start a business, which now is again targeted.

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## anakin

Justloadit, yes you are spot on! BEE, AA, quotas and what is the next?

It is completely unconstitutional and this is a serious violation UN's Resolution of Basic Human Rights.

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## Dave A

> Zungu said the council had been “hard at work” addressing concerns the president had alluded to at his annual Christmas party in Nkandla last week. Zuma called for a debate on the meaning of BEE, whose definition he believes has been narrowed.


Is the problem a narrowing of definition, or a narrowing of beneficiaries? Someone who has enjoyed some benefit from BEE has a distinct advantage over someone who has yet to be so fortunate. As a result, the space for new beneficiaries closes.

Not surprising that the committees prefer to look for new fodder rather than looking at their grazing policy on existing lands, though.

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## Dave A

Had to dash, so just hit the "post" button for the one above.

But on coming back, there's another quotable bit that deserves comment.



> Manyi called for the proper allocation of score points to prevent the slide into a box-ticking exercise.


And I thought one of the problems was it *hasn't* been a box-ticking excercise so far - at least not the boxes that appear on the adjudication sheet.

The invisible boxes would be along these lines:
Is this the best bribe?
Is this Nelson Mandela's son?
Is this my wife/husband/cousin?
Is he/she a member of the ANC?
Is he/she a member of the ANCYL?
Did he/she make a substantial donation to the party this year?
If I resign my job after I've awarded the contract, will this company hire me at a much better salary?

I probably missed a few... but they're invisible, so it's not easy to tell what all the boxes might be from the outside.

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## anakin

Yeah, it is quite hypocritical, Dave A. 

I'm wondering what will happen if we all refuse to comply to BEE policy on ground of racism? 

Shouldn't we be protected by equality bill/law? They could be offered the same opportunities by giving them scholarship/bursaries, still based on demography, instead of snatching from us. The competition would be both healthy and fulfilling. 

My parents couldn't afford my tertiary education and they were still paying for my school fees. I managed to get bursary from Department of Labour after A-aggregate in Senior Certificate Exam (2001). The apartheid ended long time ago.

I was born profoundly and proudly Deaf to Deaf parents and I lived through communication "apartheid" for long time until we were presented with wonderful technologies (sms, email, live-captioning, Internet, subtitles, Skype and Relay Services). It opened the door ajar and I grabbed the opportunity to get where I am now. I didn't need DEE (Disability Economic Empowerment).

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## BusFact

> I'm wondering what will happen if we all refuse to comply to BEE policy on ground of racism?


You lose out on customers, thats what happens. This legislation is different from the norm. You can ignore it and refuse to comply by not getting rated or improving your rating, but that just limits your potential customer base. There are no fines or threats of imprisonment.

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anakin (11-Jan-11)

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## anakin

Really? That's awesome news.

I think I've got nothing to worry about because 90% of my clients are foreign and I was never asked for BEE ratings from local advertising agencies because they look at the quality of my work and not the color of my skin. I thought there would be consequences like penalty from the Government if we don't comply with BEE policy. 

Hang on, are there any tax complications?

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## anakin

Please don't get me wrong, it does not mean that I'm not worried about the direction it is heading. It is still not good for local economy, especially for the minority groups.

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## BusFact

> Hang on, are there any tax complications?


None that I know of ... yet.

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## desA

Time to establish solid Re-affirmative , Re-Empowerment (RE) networks.

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## Dave A

I reckon they've got the wrong people looking at this to produce any kind of objective recommendation.

For example, I reckon one of the problems is the people who have already indulged in the BEE fountain of opportunity have now been empowered and now need to get out of the fountain to make room for others who need a turn. Of course Bra Jimmy, who has had a really good wallow in the BEE fountain of opportunity, is rather strongly opposed to the vaguest suggestion that he should now be competing on an even footing with the previously advantaged - let alone that he might (now fairly) be at a disadvantage to a new crop of BEE beneficiaries.

That's the problem with "fair" - it tends to be rather heavily influenced by whether you're giving or getting. What are the chances of Bra Jimmy making a recommendation that would be to his personal disadvantage (no matter how logical the supporting argument)?

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