Minister of Labour Membathisi Mdladlana has appealed to all South African employers to respect the constitutional rights of workers by allowing them to go and cast their vote on Wednesday April 14.
“Any attempt on the part of employers to prevent workers from voting would be a contravention of the worker’s constitutional rights,” Mdladlana warned on Tuesday, hours before the country’s third democratic elections.
“Employers should be aware that the 14th of April has been declared a public holiday in accordance with Section 2A of the Public Holiday Act.
“This holiday was declared specifically to allow South Africans to exercise their right to vote, which is a right entrenched in the Constitution of South Africa.”
Mdladlana said employers are well aware of the history of South Africa where blacks were not allowed to vote for more than 300 years.
“It is time that employers show their patriotism and encourage their workers to go and vote for the party of their choice,” said Mdladlana.
He suggested that employers that need to be open on the day, such as supermarkets, could establish rosters to enable workers to vote.
Polling stations will be open from 7am to 9pm.