NEWSFLASH FOR WEEK 3 (11 – 15 October 2021)

BUSINESS

New law could cause businesses to pull out of South Africa – or avoid it altogether: CEO

Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) chief executive Busi Mavuso has warned against sections of the Draft Companies Amendment Bill that will impact South Africa’s attractiveness as a place to do business.

In an article published on BusinessDay, Mavuso said that there were two critical issues with the bill:

• Listed companies are going to be required to disclose the ratio of the top-paid to the bottom-paid 5% of workers;
• A requirement to identify shareholders who are the “true or beneficial” owners of shares in a company.

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Apple juice recall: Probe opened into company for supplying ‘unsafe’ products to public

The National Consumer Commission (NCC) on Wednesday announced it is pursuing Elgin Fruit Juice for allegedly supplying “goods that are unsafe or pose a potential risk to the public”.

This follows the recall of apple juice by Coca-Cola Beverages, Pioneer Foods and Woolworths earlier this month amid concerns about a mould toxin in the products. Patulin is a toxic substance produced by a fungus and commonly associated with rotting apples.

POPIA

If it happened to them, it could happen to you: Lessons from the Information Regulator

A business’ operations can be brought to a standstill if it experiences a data breach – a reality which is becoming more and more familiar. Section 22 of the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA) requires responsible parties to notify both the Information Regulator and the relevant data subject(s) of a breach where there are reasonable grounds to believe that their personal information has been accessed or acquired by any unauthorised person. The Information Regulator itself recently had the unfortunate opportunity to demonstrate this requirement.

TRANSPORT

Big changes coming for traffic fines in South Africa

The Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) has begun phase 2 in its national rollout of the new Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) system, including planned changes for traffic fines.

The Aarto system will penalise drivers and fleet operators guilty of traffic offences or infringements by imposing demerit points that could lead to the suspension or cancellation of licences, professional driving permits or operator cards.