| 7.1.1 |
When employers recruit they must— |
| (a) |
identify the inherent requirements of the vacant position in terms of the essential functions of the job; |
| (b) |
describe clearly the necessary skills and capabilities required for the job; |
| (c) |
set reasonable criteria for selection, preferably in writing, for job applicants for such vacant positions. |
| 7.1.2 |
The 'inherent requirements of the job' are those requirements the employer stipulates as necessary for a person to be appointed to the job, and are necessary in order to enable an employee to perform the essential functions of the job. |
| 7.1.3 |
Application forms should focus on identifying an applicant's ability to perform the inherent requirements of the job. |
| 7.1.4 |
Advertisements should be accessible to persons with disabilities and, where reasonable and practical, circulated to organizations that represent the interests of persons with disabilities. |
| 7.1.5 |
Advertisements or notices must include sufficient detail about the essential functions and the inherent requirements of the job so that potential applicants with disabilities can be able to make an informed decision. |
| 7.1.6 |
Employers may not include criteria that is not necessary to perform the essential functions of the job, as selection based on non-essential functions may unfairly exclude persons with disabilities. |
| 7.1.7 |
On request and if reasonable in the circumstances, notices and advertisements should be provided in a format appropriate to persons with disabilities such as large print, Braille, or audiotape. |
| 7.2.1 |
Subject to reasonable accommodation, employers should apply the same criteria to test the ability of persons with disabilities as are applied to other applicants. |
| 7.2.2 |
The purpose of the selection process is to assess whether or not the applicant is suitably qualified.8 This may require a two-stage process if the applicant has a disability, which includes: |
| (a) |
Determining whether an applicant is suitably qualified; |
| (b) |
Determining whether a 'suitably qualified applicant' needs any accommodation to be able to perform the essential functions of the job. |
| 7.2.3 |
When assessing if an applicant is suitably qualified, an employer may not request information about actual or perceived disability from a previous employer or third party unless with the written consent of the applicant. |
| 7.2.4 |
Employers must monitor their criteria for selection. If these criteria tend to exclude people with disabilities, they must be reviewed to ensure that they do not unfairly discriminate against persons with disabilities. |
| 7.3.1 |
Selection interviews must be objective and unbiased. Interviewers must avoid assumptions about persons with disabilities. |
| 7.3.2 |
If the applicant has disclosed a disability or has a self-evident disability, the employer must focus on whether the applicant is suitable qualified for the work rather than on any actual or presumed disability. |
| 7.3.3 |
Interviewers should ask applicants referred to in 7.3.2 above, to indicate how they would perform the essential functions or work and if reasonable accommodation is required. |
| 7.3.4 |
If the employer knows in advance that the applicant has a disability, or if the applicant has a self-evident disability, the employer should if necessary, make reasonable accommodation during the interview. |
7.4 Conditional Job Offers
| 7.4.1 |
If an applicant with a disability is suitably qualified, an employer may make a job offer conditional on medical or functional testing to determine an applicant's actual or potential ability to perform the essential functions of a specific job. |
| 7.4.2 |
The testing must comply with the statutory requirements and must determine if the applicant is able to perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation. |
| 7.4.3 |
A conditional job offer may only be made to one person at a time, not to all applicants with disabilities that may have applied for the job. |
| 7.4.4 |
The employer may withdraw the job offer if the testing shows that— |
| (a) |
Reasonable accommodation requirements would create unjustifiable hardship; or |
| (b) |
There is an objective justification that relates to the inherent requirements of the job; or |
| (c) |
There is an objective justification that relates to health and safety. |
| 7.5 |
Terms and Conditions of Employment |
| 7.5.1 |
An employer may not— |
| (a) |
employ people with disabilities or, |
| (b) |
retain employees who become disabled, on less favourable terms and conditions than employees doing the same work, for reasons connected with the disability. |
| 7.5.2 |
No person may harass an employee on the ground of disability. Such harassment may include teasing, ridicule and offensive remarks. Any alleged harassment should be handled by the employer in terms of the guidelines contained in the Code of Good Practice on the Integration of Employment Equity into Human Resource Policies and Practices and the Code of Good Practice on the Handling of Sexual Harassment Cases published in terms of the Labour Relations Act, 1995. |
| 8 |
The Act provides for 'suitably qualified person’ in sub sections 20(3), 20(4), and 20(5). |
Subsection 20(3) states that a person may be suitably qualified for a job as a result of any one of, or any combination of that person's (a) formal qualifications; (b) prior learning; (c) relevant experience, or (d) capacity to acquire, within a reasonable time, the ability to do the job.
Subsection 20(4) when determining whether a person is suitably qualified for a job, an employer must—
| (a) |
review all the factors listed in subsection (3); and |
| (b) |
determine whether that person has the ability to do the job in terms of any one of, or any combination of those factors. Subsection 20(5) in making a determination under subsection (4), an employer may not unfairly discriminate against a person solely on the grounds of that person's lack of relevant experience. |
Public Service Commission Act, 1997
