/ 21 October 2003

Sanlam denies retrenchments are racially biased

Sanlam Life, the life assurance subsidiary of listed South African financial services group Sanlam Ltd, confirmed on Monday that about 350 people would lose their jobs as part of the group’s current restructuring process. The restructuring is part of a comprehensive effort to save R250-million in costs in Sanlam Life over the next year.

Meanwhile, according to a spokesperson for trade union Solidarity, a senior delegation from Solidarity and Sanlam would be meeting on Tuesday to discuss the company’s retrenchment plans, which were characterised as “racially motivated”.

Spokesperson Dirk Hermann said Solidarity would attempt to mobilise the Afrikaans community to force Sanlam to cancel “their racially motivated plans”.

The campaign would include e-mail, SMS and an internet campaign, but would be delayed until after the meeting with Sanlam took place.

“If Sanlam go on with their racially motivated retrenchments Solidarity will ask its members to cancel their policies at Sanlam,” Hermann said in a statement.

Commenting on the issue, Lizé Lambrechts, executive head of Sanlam Life, said there was no truth in the perception created by recent media reports that Sanlam Life was mainly targeting white staff members in the restructuring process, launched in September.

“People of all races will be affected as the process is aimed at keeping the company focused and profitable in the face of current challenges, and will inevitably involve the restructuring of posts,” Lambrechts said in a statement.

She emphasised that the process was being carried out strictly in accordance with labour legislation.

“Sanlam has never stated that whites are specifically targeted in this process,” she said. “On the contrary, 65 people have been appointed to new posts during the restructuring process this past week. Three of them are black — the rest are white and mainly Afrikaans-speaking men.”

Sanlam remained legally bound to employment equity, she added, just like any other company.

“Externally, our priorities remain outstanding service and the best return on our clients’ money. In order to reach these goals our internal focus has to be, amongst other things, on productivity and cost-effectiveness through the optimal use of our staff complement. An optimal staff complement must, apart from its capability, also fulfill the requirements of the Employment Equity Act and comply with the objectives envisaged in the recently announced Financial Services Charter.

“To conclude that our current process of retrenchment is aimed at white Sanlam employees in order to fulfill these requirements and objectives is, however, totally unfounded. Staff of all races are affected by it. I would also like to assure our clients that the process is conducted carefully and compassionately and that the services we render will not be affected by it,” she said.

Commenting further, Hermann said the first prize for the union would be a settlement.

“We read in the media that Sanlam deny the allegations that they want to retrench white workers as part of their restructuring process. Before we start our countrywide campaign we will give Sanlam the opportunity to tell their side of the story,” Hermann said.

“Affirmative action is an employment act and not a retrenchment act. The meaning of the Act is not for people to lose their jobs due to affirmative action. What Sanlam plan to do is to take the Act further than what is asked for and we will fight that.” – I-Net Bridge