03 April 2020

Eaton South Africa achieves level 1 BBBEE rating for third year running

Submitted by: Mosa Mokone

Power management company Eaton is proud to announce that it has achieved the top rating as a Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) contributor in South Africa for the third consecutive year. Providing a framework for economic transformation, South Africa’s BBBEE program seeks to address the social harm caused by apartheid. The legislation aims to enhance the economic participation of previously disadvantaged people of color in the country’s economy. With eight levels of compliance, Eaton South Africa’s reaffirmed BBBEE level 1 status signifies its continuing commitment to inclusion, diversity, and transformation.

The company scored a total of 101.45 points in its most recent assessment, with key metrics including 25.5% black ownership and 13.51% black women ownership. “Achieving a BBBEE level 1 score for the third year in a row demonstrates our huge commitment to being the preferred supplier to all our customers and channel partners across Africa,” comments Boitumelo Moselane, manager, Human Resources. “Our top rating will deepen our ability to help drive transformation in South Africa, as well as increase the competitiveness of our customers and suppliers. As a level 1 business partner, our ranking offers benefits to everyone in our supply chain—both financially and by increasing their own BBBEE scores.” 

Every organization’s BBBEE rating is based on a scorecard assessing five pillars of empowerment: ownership, management, skills development, enterprise development, and socio-economic development. Each pillar carries a different percentage weighting to calculate the final score. “We’re thrilled to see our ongoing efforts to foster inclusion and diversity paying off,” adds Seydou Kane, managing director, Africa. “We firmly believe our dynamic mix of people makes us stronger as a business, fueling sustainable growth that benefits us, our customers, and our communities. We’ve worked tirelessly to ensure that each and every employee in South Africa feels included, empowered, and welcomed, so we can all contribute our best.” 

Recent inclusion and diversity initiatives at Eaton South Africa include developing women leaders with mentoring, training, and networking programs—with five female team leaders now on the shop floor. The company also offers a robust graduate program for students and apprentices that emphasizes practical experience and on-the-job learning, which saw 12 students absorbed into permanent roles during 2019. Eaton has been operating in Africa since 1927 and has offices in South Africa, Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire, Morocco, and Nigeria, as well as more than 200,000 square feet of manufacturing space located in South Africa and Morocco. Eaton’s mission is to improve the quality of life and the environment through the use of power management technologies and services. We provide sustainable solutions that help our customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power – more safely, more efficiently and more reliably. Eaton’s 2019 revenues were $21.4 billion, and we sell products to customers in more than 175 countries. We have approximately 101,000 employees. For more information, visit Eaton.com.