01/05/2022
THE REALITY OF JOBS IN SOUTH AFRICA AND THE UNFAIRNESS OF OUR EMPLOYMENT SYSTEM
: this post is based on my personal experiences and is not intended to attack any particular group, religion, race or gender.
No, this is not one of your ‘reverse apartheid, affirmative action type’ reads, but of a reality that many of us may not be alive to.
I was a diligent student and an avid participant in all schooling activities from Athletics to hosting school events and concerts and heading up the Prefect Committee. My matriculant exam saw me receive three strong distinctions, which to say the least was disappointing. It nevertheless granted me a bursary for my first-year tuition at the University of Kwa Zulu Natal. (Then Howard College)
My four years study of Law saw me walk out with a basket of seventeen distinctions (a grade 7 rating) and sixteen grade 6 ratings, (comprising 33 modules), with an overall average of 70% across 40 modules. I would consider this decent. My Master of Laws Degree saw me pocket four high distinctions with an overall average of 72% across 8 modules. I thought I did well.
I had my first interview for articles with a prominent Law Firm (one of the big five), sifted out like a diamond from the 100’s of law students, so I thought at the time.
My interview questions were very personal and largely economically based.
Where do you live?
What do your parents do?
I lived in Chatsworth; I still do. My parents did not complete Matric, and I am the first generation in my family to obtain a University Degree. I realised then, that my academic achievement was only 50% of the benchmark. Needless to say, the boy with the same grade average as me, who lived in Umhlanga and whose parents were both Doctors, got the job.
It matters not how many cold mornings you stood at the bus rank waiting for public transport to take you to University, whilst the rich kid drove to school in an Alfa Romeo; it matters not that you had to work as a waitress throughout your four years of Law to pay for text books, whilst the rich kid’s parents paid for everything including the bubble-gum he brought to class with him every day; it matters not that the hardships you had to endure were ten-fold than the rich kid’s hardships, to attain the same degree, it matters not that you had to set precedent and the rich kid merely followed precedent – What really mattered was your potential to bring in clients for the Employer by virtue of your inherited network?
So here I am – 14 years later with tons of street smartness and exceptional legal experience, presently working for a decent company in Durban, with average pay, extreme stress and no time for family. Where did it all go wrong- At that very first interview, my actual lineage, or my very own shortcomings?
I do know one thing- the job market is an unfair one. Men still earn more than women- South Africa has various pieces of legislation aimed at preventing gender discrimination in the workplace. Yet, our country has a stagnant median gender pay gap of between 23% and 35%, Women are still treated like they belong in the home and the rich continue to get more privileges than the middle-class economy or the poor, in the workspace. Where will we draw the line and when will true worth be recognised?
When this time comes, if it does come, I hope to be alive to see my children benefit.
