Employment equity and an improved quality of life: The case of a white woman and the South African Police Service

Abstract

The widely reported South African Police Service v Solidarity obo Barnard was selected as a typical case for making sense of affirmative action implementation measures in the South African public sector. This case study consisted primarily of the analysis of regulatory documents and reported court cases. The study was broadly framed within the theoretical reflections on the reasons for the existence of the state and the realisation of the common good. The proposition that all citizens of a state are entitled to the common good (quality of life, well-being, freedom, equality, safety and dignity) has been selected as one of the theoretical foundations for this study. In addition to this affirmation of citizens’ rights, is the second theoretical foundation which relates to the appropriateness of state action, namely that it should only aim to promote, protect and honour citizens’ right to the common good. The foundation of this study implies that citizens are entitled to the common good and that state actions should protect that entitlement. However, a third founding proposition for this study is that any state action, irrespective of its nobility, should be legally authorised and constitutionally governed. The selected case chronology revealed that four different courts considered this case with different interpretations of the facts and the circumstances. This study shows that although the implementation of employment equity measures occurs within a legal framework outlining the various required criteria, the final decision is of a discretionary nature within a framework of constitutional values and principles. Lastly, the study shows that public managers are expected to take considered, legal, rational and fair employment equity decisions in the interest of the difficult to measure common good of society.