Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) holders who cannot obtain alternative work permits will have to be dismissed, and despite having contributed to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), will not be able to claim from the fund.
That’s according to the National Employers Association of South Africa (Neasa) which has been fielding a range of queries regarding the impact on ZEP holders and their employers of the scrapping of the permits.
They are valid until June 30, 2023.
“Concerns range from the possibilities of applying for and obtaining alternative work visas/permits, to the dismissal of those unable to obtain alternative work visas, as well as the benefits of affected ZEP employees,” says Neasa CEO Gerhard Papenfus.
During a meeting with the director of provincial support of the UIF earlier this month, it was revealed that the UIF Act, in section 16, states that an unemployed contributor is entitled to unemployment benefits for any period of unemployment lasting more than 14 days, if:
- the reason for the unemployment is the dismissal of the contributor; and
- the contributor is registered as a work-seeker with a labour centre; and
- the contributor is capable of and available for work.
Therefore, if a ZEP holder fails to obtain an alternative work permit or visa, they can no longer be lawfully employed. This means that their respective employers must, in accordance with the Labour Relations and Immigration Act, dismiss them based on incapacity.
If the permit holder is dismissed due to their incapacity to be lawfully employed, they will also be barred from registering as work-seekers at any labour centres (based on their illegal status), and they will not qualify as being “capable and available for work”, in terms of the UIF Act.
Which means that the hard truth is that they won’t be able to claim from a fund to which they have been contributing.
Neasa says this is devastating for the affected employee, is highly inconvenient for thousands of employers, and will be entirely futile in terms of addressing South Africa’s unemployment crisis.
“These legal Zimbabwean immigrants are merely being made a scapegoat for political reasons.”
