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2007 is flying past and we are well into the final quarter. For
most companies it has been a year of unbelievable opportunities
and business has been good. Unfortunately, the challenges are
becoming more and more difficult as we all find good skills and
talented people hard to find. This update will concentrate on how
some of these challenges are being tackled and what we can do to
ensure that these skills are available to our SMME and Micro
Enterprises.
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT
We are already half way though the current training year which
ends on the 31 March 2008. To ensure your company is working
towards your training plan objectives, and that you receive the
mandatory grant refund of 50% of Skills Development Levy; please
monitor your current training plan and make sure you have trained
at least 60% of the employees you said would be trained, and that
your training spend is equal to the 50% of the Skills Development
Levy for this period.
Many of our clients have taken advantage of Discretionary Funding
offered by the Seta’s, and we shall shortly be contacting our
clients within Merseta and the Wholesale & Retail Seta’s when they
start offering for 2008. If you have not taken advantage of this
opportunity before, please phone Jane who can assist you.
If we have had a challenging year, the SETA’s have had a difficult
year. They are facing increasing criticism for non-delivery by
both the Minister of Labour and their own industries and with
suggestions that the number of SETA’s be reduced to make them more
effective, they are facing staffing and motivation challenges. No
one is denying that South Africa, and perhaps the world, are
facing severe skills shortages and yet, we still have the problem
of large numbers of unemployed people. Recent reports in the media
suggest that companies should list their vacancies on a national
database so that unemployed graduate skills can be matched with
vacancies.
There has been much talk in the media recently concerning Skills
Development funding, the working and management of the Seta’s and
National scarce and critical skills. The Ministers of Labour &
Finance have committed over R300 million to addressing these
skills shortages, with the commitment to train 20,000 + artisans
and learnerships within the next few years.
There is also expected to be a rationalization of Seta’s from the
current 23 to 5 or 10 when their current mandates expire in March
2010. We will also keep you updated on the changes within Quality
Assurance and the planned formation of the ‘New Quality Council
for Trade and Occupations’ in 2009. This Council would be
responsible for all workplace and work related learning and
qualifications.
EMPLOYMENT EQUITY
2008 is a reporting year for all companies who are designated to
submit Employment Equity Reports to the Minister of Manpower. As
the definition of a designated employer has not changed since
1998, it is useful to remember that if your company’s turnover
exceeds those listed in the table below, despite the fact that you
may have less than 50 employees, you are required to comply with
the Employment Equity Act.
R 2 m Agriculture
R 5 m Construction, Catering, Social, Personal & Community
services
R7.5m Mining & quarrying
R10 m Manufacturing, Finance, Business, Storage, Communications,
Transport
R15 m Retail, Motor Trade, Repair Services
R25 m Wholesale Trade, Commercial Agents
The department is in the process of evaluating last year’s
submissions and sending reports to companies which indicate
whether they believe that the company’s employment equity report
is satisfactory, reasonable or unsatisfactory. The Department of
Labour is currently prosecuting 33 companies who they believe are
not complying with the legislation.
Should you have become a designated employer and wish to comply
with the legislation please contact Penny at our offices.
ON-LINE SKILLS ASSESSMENT
We have had numerous requests from various clients asking how
potential candidates can be tested on basic computer literacy
skills, as well as on the MS Office Suite. I have managed to
source an online programme that can electronically test various
skills. These tests vary between 3-10 minutes and are all
administered online and can be easily managed and administered.
This tool can also be used to screen current and potential
employees quickly and effectively.
Once a specific test has been administered a report is immediately
generated and can be printed with the scoring. This helps to
manage results and statistics, as all results and
candidates/employees results are permanently stored on the system
for easy retrieval. These tests are essential for HR personnel
files and can assist in evaluating where employees will need
potential future training.
The range of tests offered are:
A full range of IT skills assessments ranging from A+ and N+ to
programming skills in various languages from C# to VB.Net is also
going to be offered should the need arise. Should you have
specific tests you require that are normally manually driven,
these tests can be converted to electronic form for easier
reference and report generating.
As the testing is done online, the system can be accessed from any
computer therefore any candidate/employee can be tested at any
place and time deemed suitable. The cost will be R100.00 per
skills set test plus the consulting fee per hour. This is to cover
time, administration, reporting and candidate/employee and client
feedback.
Should you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact
Pleia Alberts at our office or at
hr@connold.co.za
TRAINING
This has been a very busy activity for our company. Four groups
are currently completing the Leadership Training Modules and their
work will be moderated in January by SETA prior to the award of
certificates. We have also been conducting Life Skills Training
which has largely been funded by discretionary grants from
Wholesale and Retail Seta. We were very proud to have our
accreditation as a training provider extended to 2010. Debbie will
be planning further leadership and Life Skills training programmes
for 2008 and if anyone is interested in attending please contact
her at the office.
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE FUND
We wonder how many people noticed the small increase in their
contribution to the Unemployment Insurance Fund in their October
Salaries. The Department of Labour has been increasing the
threshold for contributions twice a year in order to improve the
benefits available to senior employees. Currently the maximum
contribution is calculated on R12 478-00 per month. This means
that employees who earn more than this and wish to claim benefits
from the UIF fund are entitled to a maximum benefit of 42% of R12
478-00, i.e. R5 240-00 per month. As the threshold is increased,
so this benefit will be increased.
Remember you can claim from the UIF fund for the following
benefits:
DISPLAY OF ACTS
As you may be aware all workplaces are required to display the
following Acts:
The Government Printer has been our normal source for these
laminated display boards, however, they seem to be having a major
supply problem at present and we have sourced an alternative
supply. If you need any copies of these Acts for your offices or
branches (they must be everywhere) please contact Andrea at the
office. |
