Dr. Dirk Hermann. (Photo: Pieter Cloete/Maroela Media)
Coca-Cola withdrew a job advertisement in which it required a candidate from a “designated group”, after Solidarity took legal action against the company.
Dr. Dirk Hermann, CEO of Solidarity, says there is no moral justification for classifying unemployed young people according to race. “There is also no obligation on companies to have race requirements in advertising.”
On the contrary, it is illegal to have breed-exclusive ads. Race in advertising is a self-imposed duty of employers that must stop, says Hermann.
Among other things, Solidarity started a process against Coca-Cola at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), of which the USA is a signatory. Hermann says part of the process is to put the company on terms.
“Coca-Cola wrote back and undertook to withdraw the ad immediately and start an internal process to ensure this does not happen again.”
In the meantime, Solidarity continues with a process together with Coca-Cola to ensure that racial exclusion does not rear its head again in the future.
Hermann says Solidarity also continues its campaign against racial requirements in advertisements and South Africa’s racial program in general. “We have identified around 20 more companies with exclusive breed requirements and plan to take action against them.”
These companies not only behave immorally but also violate various laws and international conventions.
Hermann says this is also a violation of the terms of the settlement between Solidarity and the South African government under the supervision of the International Labor Organization (ILO), which is also an order of the court.