“I would like to start/buy a business in the New Year? What legislation should I look out for?”
Starting a business today has been turned into a complex set of legislative red tape. Although let's be fair. You wouldn't want your neighbour starting an abattoir or a chemical recycling plant next door. Almost everybody has a soft spot for somebody starting a new business, or buying a business and we don't want them to repeat the same slip-ups we made.
In starting or buying a business there are some rules you need to understand as you walk through the minefields of the needlessly time-consuming procedure called bureaucracy. And if you think it's strictly a South African phenomenon - forget it, it isn't. Governments worldwide are pumping out volumes of legislation that restrict, hamper and limit business growth and in the same breathe telling businesses that they're trying to help them. It would make the tree huggers of the world unit and run for the hills.
In South Africa, you may have to deal with:
Auditing Profession Act - auditors must report irregularities discovered while auditing a client’s financial statements or face jail and for this service, they charge you the earth.
Bargaining Council – a collective organisation that forces you to pay your employees more than you can afford, established in the 1940s but went through a name change. There is one for your industry
Basic Conditions of Employment Act – what time the employee starts work, has tea, lunch, tea, and goes home and make sure that's pinned up somewhere for them to see.
Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) – to distribute wealth of the wealthy across a broader spectrum of South African society as possible
CIPRO - where all businesses have to submit their details annually with a fee and if not done, you may fine you have no CC or PTY registered
Companies Act – a complicated structure; with a complex set of rules consisting of interconnected parts for public and private and companies
Close Corporations Act – similar to the Companies Act but a lot less complicated
Consumer Protection Bill – this Act has sought to protect the consumer from every angle, from against the good, the bad, the ugly, and every wolf.
Electronic Communications and Transactions Act – be careful what you write, sell, and advertise on the internet
Employment Equity Act – affirmative action, to promote and achieve equity in the workplace, by not only advancing people from designated groups but also specifically dis-advancing others.
Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act – don't give financial advice if you're not registered, even if you know the person is investing their money in an illegal scheme or making a bad business decision
Financial Intelligence Centre Act - To provide high quality, timeous financial intelligence for use in the fight against crime, money laundering and terror financing in order for South Africa to protect the integrity and stability of its financial system. That's why your cellphone provider is so paranoid about all your details
Labour Relations Act – it tells the employer that they have limited rights in their own business and how to conduct themselves
National Credit Act – don't lend money to people who can't afford to pay you back.
Promotion of Access to Information Act – for anyone who wants to know the what, when, why and how of your business for a fee and a reason. (may not be implemented – too much paper work)
SARS – don't mess with them – pay up then complain.
SETA - a minefield of bureaucracy and a nightmare for SMEs, where you have to fill out pink, green, yellow, white and blue forms, create a business plan just so employees can do a better job, and if you initiate the skills development projects in your business you may reclaim some of your expenditure on these initiatives.
Workmen's Compensation - Workers who are affected by occupational injuries and diseases are entitled to compensation. You must register each employee, including yourself
If you'd like to know more about any act relevant to your industry go to www.acts.co.za or search for the appropriate government department.
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