Local labour procurement practices and policy : a case study of Kusile power station.
Date
2013-08-08
Authors
Tshabangu, Nqobile Nkotitshi
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
There is a general conformity in employment discourses that informal employment is not welcomed in the employment circles regardless of how well marketed it could be. The government of South Africa on its state owned projects in the construction industry introduced policies that promoted local labour procurement of employees a process that has resulted with heavy contestations due to its application. This study examines the impact of local labour procurement policy on locally recruited employees and those who got retrenched purely for the purpose of accommodating the policy requirement. This is done through the use of Kusile power station as a case study. It adopts qualitative research approach using interviews and document analysis. The study also examines this policy in conjunction with the current labour legislation and the effects it has on the existing labour and the proposed amendment labour bills. It also examines the motive behind the introduction of the policy and who has benefited from it. However the findings reveal that there is inconsistence in the application of the policy. The purpose why the policy was introduced is to reduce unemployment poverty in the areas where these projects are being constructed. Further also the study reveals that in as much as the policy promotes informal employment, this type of informal employment is different from the commonly well-known informal employment purely on the aspect of remuneration and benefits compared to the common one.