12/02/2016

One of the most important changes in the Revised Codes of Good Practice (RCoGP) is that there are now three priority pillars: Ownership; Skills Development; and Enterprise and Supplier Development. A minimum 40% threshold applies to certain indicators in respect of these pillars, and failure to comply will result in companies being penalised. Companies not meeting the threshold of these elements will drop one level on their BEE scorecard.

The purpose of the Skills Development Pillar is to achieve economic growth and social development that will enrich the creation of decent work and sustainable livelihoods for all South Africans. Organisations need to educate themselves now about sustainable livelihoods within the context of the communities in which they do business. This has the added possibility of leading to new and innovative business channels. Community based manufacturing informed by that particular market = market already in existence. Pharmaceutical companies do community based health training which is a need for these communities - these are also future clients and employees.

In the skills and development learning matrix,  Category F (informal training outside of the workplace by way of workshops, conferences etc) & Category G (informal training that takes place at the workplace) training have been capped at 15% collectively. This echoes the government’s push for accredited training. In addition, the SETA workplace skills plan and Actual training report and Pivotal skills report now need to be approved by the relevant sector SETA. This means that organisations can no longer afford to ignore SETAs but instead need to foster in partnership and co-creation, especially when considering the business risk of not scoring well on ones scorecard.

There are now five bonus points if 100%  of the black learners are absorbed into employment with the organisation or in the industry. Organisations will now have to choose learners carefully and choose quality learners and learnerships rather than just  focusing on the numbers. It also means that we will see a rise in learnerships for senior, top and  executive level as a response to the section on Management Control (previously Employment Equity and Management Control)  Sub –minimums in this pillar have been removed however there are specific targets for African, Coloured and Indian people according to gender. These targets appear to be based on the national statistics of the economically active population of South Africa. This could be a new challenge for companies with a strong demographic bias e.g  Durban or Cape Town.

Gone are the days of haphazard training due to ethnic and gender capping because the RCoGP now force departments in organisations to not work in silos. Skills development, human resources, recruitment and line managers who make placement decisions need to be aware of the organisation’s  Management Control (EE) strategy because the implications of not having the “right” mix of African, Coloured and Indian people will impact the company’s ability to reach the sub-minimum the for Skills Development.

Transcend  can assist with structuring a learning and development strategies that responds to your own unique business needs whilst scoring on the BEE scorecard.

By Wanda Moraka, Training Manager, Transcend Corporate Advisors

For more information contact Wanda Moraka at wanda@transcend.co.za

(Article published with the kind courtesy of Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr)