Earlier this month Huawei Technologies South Africa found itself in the crosshairs of the Department of Employment and Labour over how much local talent was operating at the firm, with a lawsuit being filed over lack of employment transformation at Huawei SA.

In the wake of the lawsuit, Huawei SA is now looking to head to the negotiating table with the Department of Labour and reach a solution over the company’s employment equity plans.

“The Department of Employment and Labour and Huawei Technologies South Africa (Pty) Ltd, have entered into talks to reach a settlement agreement and have agreed to stay court proceedings instituted by the department against Huawei on 11 February 2022 pending the outcome of the negotiations,” the company explained in a press statement sent to Hypertext.

Suspending the court proceedings is an important step for Huawei SA, as any drawn out legal case would likely have done lasting damage to the image of the firm, which has operated locally with some success to date.

“During the meeting, Huawei demonstrated its extensive ICT skills transfer and training programs that are aimed at reducing the ICT skills gap and fostering a strong digital talent ecosystem for South Africa to further embrace 5G, Cloud, AI and other 4IR technologies.  This was acknowledged by the Department of Employment and Labour who advised Huawei to expand this further in their Employment Equity plan,” the statement adds. 

While we are yet to know the outcome of the talks, it will be interesting to see what changes take effect at Huawei SA after they are concluded, with specific focus being directed at the make up of local talent at the organisation.

“Discussions are ongoing. Huawei is committed to being fully cooperative with the Department, and both sides are positive that this matter will be concluded shortly,” the statement concluded.