Solidarity took FNB to task about their allocation of education bursaries for employees' children. The November issue of Treetalk (FNB's newsletter) offer financial support to children of African, Indian, Coloured and Chinese employees earning less than R100,000 a year. This is a very well reported story indeed.
I'm not in the way of getting involved in politics and I am no fan of trade unions so I'm not going to discuss the merits of Solidarity's complaint. The thing that I picked up on was the comment on meeting with FNB CEO Michael Jordaan and Solidarity's Dirk Hermann
The union said yesterday that during talks between Dirk Hermann, deputy general secretary of Solidarity, and FNB CEO Michael Jordaan, it had been agreed that the bank would include whites in allocating bursaries if the law allowed for such a step.
Apparently FNB had been advised by lawyers
According to legal advice obtained by FNB at the time regarding the transaction, those who benefit from black empowerment must exclusively be black.
LEGAL ADVICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You paid for legal advice of this quality? I think you were ripped off Michael. The correct advice goes along these lines.
Paragraph 3.2 of code 700 (DTI) clarifies what socio-economic development contributions are. It is 3.2.2 that is most important here:
The full value of SED contributions made to beneficiaries is recognisable if at least 75% of the value directly benefits black people.
Even the FSC implicitly concurs with this paragraph
13.2 CSI means projects aimed primarily at black groups, communities and individuals that have a strong developmental approach and contribute towards transformation.
You don't have to consult your dubious lawyers Michael - you can happily go ahead and include white people in this scheme and still earn your BEE points. Any B-grade BEE consultant or verification agency could have told you this.
I know there are those (like my odd cousin and friend Joe) who feel that this is perfectly fair, after all whites did it to black people during Apartheid. I don't agree, we as South Africans have a responsibility to invest in the future of all South Africans. This country is still suffering under that policy with low education and literacy levels. And this will always be a burdon on the country and tax payer.
Michael - you charge me R0.50 (fifty cents) for every email I send to people when I pay them from my FNB bank account. I don't mind if you continue ripping me off with these excessive charges if you have an equitable CSI policy.
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