ETD Collection

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Now showing 1 - 8 of 8
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    'Is Treasury broadening the divide between shareholders and employees - an analysis of the role taxation plays in share incentive plans'
    (2014-08-22) Hunt, Kirsten
    It is commonly understood that it is the people within the organisation that hugely affect the efficiency and work environment, which ultimately brings about greater profitability and value. With this in mind, corporate entities continue to ensure that they are attracting and retaining high performing individuals to their organisations with the view of generating greater value for shareholders. The question then arises as to how to attract key individuals to an organisation and keep those individuals. The use of share incentive plans is an established tool implemented by corporates which incentivises employees to remain at an organisation for an extended term while at the same time, attempts to align the interest of the employee with that of the shareholders. Share incentive plans provide one such solution of achieving both these objectives, but how practical is it to implement such an incentive plan in light of the constantly changing tax landscape. Against this commercial driver to attract and retain employees is the apparent mistrust by Treasury and SARS of the use of share plans to incentive employees which is considered by Treasury and SARS as a salary conversion plan with the objective of obtaining a tax advantage. This paper will consider the practical issues faced by corporates trying to implement share incentive schemes to secure the employee’s income earning structure for a prolonged period and aligning the interests of the employee with the shareholders, by considering the tax influencers behind share incentive plans which are being indirectly moulded by the tax legislation, drafted by National Treasury and implemented by SARS. This report will consider the taxation of income earned qua employee versus the income qua shareholder. In order to consider this the paper will attempt to determine where the line currently rests between employee and shareholder, by providing an outline of the current legislation around share plans and some of the commonly seen share schemes implemented in practice. This paper will then consider the direction that this line is moving, if at all, by considering the proposed changes to the legislation as drafted by Treasury and lastly consider how these proposed legislative changes impacts corporates who are trying to implement a long term share incentive plan.
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    Working ourselves to happiness: finding meaning at work through coaching in South Africa
    (2014-02-27) Bailes, Silvia Ana
    Happiness and meaning in individual and organisational functioning is addressed, as well as the role of executive and business coaching in supporting this process. Theories of applied positive psychology, as the conceptual framework underpinning happiness, and philosophies of meaning, are defined and tested within a South African context of trauma and violence. Happiness, the science, is controversial, but is explored as scientific research reports positive affects that could be relevant in alleviating related SA-specific conditions of stress and dysfunction. The study is qualitative, with data collected via semi-structured one-on-one interviews. An inductive approach is applied to the interpretation of data to arrive at recurring themes. Happiness is found to be both a concept and an outcome. The outcome is shown to comprise personal needs, intrinsic motivations and balance, the sum of which represents a construct of well-being, that leads to personal growth and performance. Limitations of the intrinsic motivations on personal growth are discussed, and the meaning motivation shown to be ‘unlimited’ and sustainable. Combining the intrinsic motivations with positive behaviours, with meaning, as a central theme, is demonstrated to result in sustainable positive impacts for individuals and their organisations. Happiness and meaning, namely, well-being, are found to be important elements of individual and organisational functioning and effectiveness. Differences in frames of reference relative to happiness are relevant in the South African context and socio-economic environment. Individuals overlook potential opportunities of benefit to organisations by ignoring the socio-economic environment when restricting the influence of their roles to their internal environments. Organisations can help employees to find meaning in their work that leads to workplace happiness and work satisfaction. Organisational threats to well-being are evidenced in negative affects that impact performance and pose a potential governance risk. Reciprocal benefits to employees and employers are evident when employees are supported by effective embedded organisational well-being programmes that mitigate this risk. Threats to employees in the well-being areas of being treated as human beings, purpose, learning, and balance, are evident. This includes existential angst and loss of hope which is attributed to SA-specific socioeconomic problems of significant proportion. In combination with trauma and violence that is endemic to SA society, this results in negative affects that impact on well-being and performance. These are important areas that could benefit from coaching support. Organisations can implement coaching processes to support employees find meaning in their personal and work lives that are of benefit to organisations. Differing perceptions of coaching needs between individuals and organisations are evident. Organisations do not appear to be aware of employees’ need for coaching in the area of purpose and meaning. Specialists express discomfort when dealing with organisations on soft issues of this nature, indicative of mindsets in need of change if coaching is to be given the organisational emphasis it deserves in supporting sustainable well-being. Findings are synthesised into a conceptual model of meaning for sustainable individual and organisational well-being, with specific reference to the coaching process. The conceptual model outlines the component parts of well-being and their symbiotic and systemic relationships for supporting personal meaning at work.
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    The manager-coach's roles and skills as needed to optimise the work-life balance of working women.
    (2013-02-18) Gouveia, Lynda Jane
    Coaching has been identified as a primary means of enabling growth, development, retention and change amongst those employed in organisations. Executive and external coaching are the primary means of delivering this coaching, and, as a result, coaching often only reaches those at the most senior levels of the organisation. The use of the manager-coach in South African organisations is not widespread but coaching has been identified as a key component of effective leadership in the 21st century and it has been suggested that it is a key leadership style. This research therefore explores the roles that manager-coaches can play in an organisation as well as the skills required to optimise this role. This research therefore took place in an organisation that is implementing a manager-coach approach. Coupled with this was the concept of work-life balance and the realities that working women face in attempting to achieve work-life balance, with the primary objective of the research being to identify the roles and skills needed by the manager-coach to optimise the work-life balance of working women. The data was gathered through face-to-face interviews and contact with a representative focus group and analysed by means of content and thematic analysis. A detailed literature review covering the areas of coaching, and in particular manager-coaching, what optimal work-life balance is as well as the realities facing working women in attempting to achieve work-life balance was also conducted. The findings show that, to optimise work-life balance in working women, the manager-coach plays a critical role in communicating with working women and optimising flexibility and choice for these women. In addition to this, the findings showed that the manager-coach plays a role in facilitating the growth and development of the women who report to them, as well as enabling their performance and providing recognition. The findings showed that these roles are enabled by manager-coach skills such as empathy, support and effective communication. The research concludes by reflecting that the manager-coach has an important role to play in enabling choice and flexibility and the growth and development of working women and it is anticipated that this has a direct impact on both the work-life balance and the retention of these women in the workplace.
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    Health beliefs and HIV risk among employees : a comparative study.
    (2012-07-11) Mncube, Bongiwe Busisiwe
    The aim of this study was to investigate and compare health beliefs among employees. The study looked at the African Traditional Model and the Medical Model in relation to HIV risk among employees in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The study sample was made up of 96 participants, all African, and predominately female. The study established employees` health beliefs by asking them to indicate their health beliefs on the Biographical Questionnaire provided in the study. HIV risk among employees was assessed through the use of HIV Risk-Taking Behaviour Scale (HRBS), Attitude to Condom Use, a sub-scale of the Sexual Risks Scale (SRSA) and Sexual Risk Cognitions Questionnaire (SRCQ). A comparison of HIV risk between the two groups of employees was achieved by performing ANOVA. In addition, the study conducted secondary analyses using correlations to establish relationships between variables. The results obtained in this study showed a statistically significant difference in HIV risk between employees who believed in the African Traditional Model and those who believed in the Medical Model in HIV prevention. Secondary correlational analyses between variables showed a significant, negative relationship between participants` attitude toward condom use and their sexual risk cognitions. The results indicated that employees who had a positive attitude towards condom use reported low sexual risk cognitions towards unsafe behaviour. In contrast, employees who had a negative attitude towards condom use showed high sexual cognitions towards unsafe sexual behaviours. Directions for future studies could focus on education and training strategies to reduce negative health beliefs among employees in the fight against HIV and AIDS in South Africa.
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    The perception and experiences of employees about the nature of communication in the North Rand region of the Department of Social Development.
    (2012-06-29) Matema, Tsholofelo Glodia
    Organisational excellence stems from the dedicated commitment of peoplewho are motivated to work together and share similar values and visions about their results of their efforts. Organisational communication is linked to managerial effectiveness, the integration of work units across organisational levels and job communication satisfaction. The Department of Social Development can review their levels of communication and the interpersonal relationship in a bid to address their quality of productivity, satisfaction of employees, communication flow, and protocol and to bring changes in the life of the organisation. The success of an organisation is based on the communication levels, flow of information and how people interact. Communication systems within organisations, both human and technological, are responsible for creatively solving increasingly complex problems. The researcher has observed that lack of communication hampers service delivery and production in the Department of Social Development. The study focuses on the perceptions and experiences of employees about the nature of communication at the Department of Social Development in the North RandRegion. A qualitative research approach that was exploratory in nature was followed. The main aim of the study was to determine how the existing communication protocol and communication channels are utilised in the Department of Social Development. Asemi-structured interview schedule and questionnaire were used as research instruments. The methods of data collection were face-toface interviews with 10 participants and questionnaires consisting onlyof open-ended questions that were completed by eight individual respondents. The population for the study was employees of the Department of Social Development in the North Rand Region. The sample represented employees from top management, middle management, line management and junior staff who have been in the employment of the Department of Social Development for more than six months. The study revealed that there is a lack of understanding of relationship roles and that employees communicate without understanding and sometimes they do not seek clarity. All parties involved must be proactive, clear messages should be communicated to all employees, employees have first to seek understanding, allow questions and provide clarity and attempt to understand the relationship role between manager andsubordinate. However, misunderstanding and misinterpretation were identified as major contributing factors to effective communication.
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    Perceptions of employees and the level of awareness about employee health and wellness
    (2012-06-07) Makala, Isaac
    Government’s major challenge is to become more effective with limited resources. Perceptions of state employees and the level of awareness about Employee Health and Wellness Programmes is a policy issue that this study attempts to understand inasmuch as it relates to performance of institutions. The objectives of the study were to gauge the level of awareness about Employee Health and Wellness programmes together with the perceptions of employees about the programme, in line with the hypothesis that suggested a contributory link between level of awareness, perceptions about a programme and organisational performance. A mixed method approach was used, which included both qualitative and quantitative methods, to determine both perception and level of awareness as it related to the performance of institutions. The study found that wellness programmes, if well managed and employees were made aware of them, could lead to increased output by employees, thus improving performance. It further established that there is an average level of awareness about employee health and wellness programmes within Public Works. The study concludes that the perceptions of employees about a policy matter and their level of awareness of programme objectives would contribute to overall performance of that institution.
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    The motivational factors that affect the productivity of the workers on a construction site
    (2008-04-10T11:14:06Z) Mokobane, Mmaphuti Onismus
    The construction industry is labour intensive in nature. People often work long hours in relatively disagreeable environments, far from their families. Even if workers are not happy to be working in a particular environment they find themselves obliged to work. Fearing reprimands from their superiors, they often find it difficult to express their ideas. It is therefore difficult for management to identify the factors of motivation that affect their workers productivity in a work environment. The aim of this study was to identify and evaluate motivational factors that affect the productivity of workers on construction sites in South Africa, focusing on skilled workers. For this, the scientific management approach and quantitative research methods were used. The findings from this study revealed that the motivational theories apply to construction sites, and management needs to apply these theories wisely in order to achieve improved productivity.
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    Legal aspects of corporate governance in the republic of South Africa: towards a possible model for improved stakeholder relations within the corporation
    (2007-02-13T13:07:13Z) Spisto, Michael Paolo
    Traditionally, company law assumes that the directors’ role is to run the company for the benefit of its shareholders alone and to maximise profits for them. It can be argued, however, that this view is too narrow and outdated; that is, company directors should have regard to the rights and interests of a broader range of corporate stakeholders. Hence, the question is whether we should change our perception of the company or corporation from one run by directors dedicated exclusively to serving the interests of shareholders to that of a corporation whose main purpose is to bring benefit not only to its owners and creditors, but also to its employees, the community and the environment. Given that reforms of directors’ duties in light of the above considerations have found their way into legislation across the globe, this thesis examines how and to what extent legal rules and policies should develop in South Africa to place directors under a positive duty to take account of the interests of bodies other than shareholders. Current South African company law does not contain clear rules regarding corporate governance issues and the duties and liabilities of directors. These matters have been left to the common law and Codes of Corporate Practice. Thus, there is no extensive statutory scheme in South Africa, which covers the duties, obligations and accountability of directors. The focus in this thesis is on the rights and interests of employees and the premise that is defended is that it is valuable to corporations to provide employees with an institutionalised voice at board level. It is argued that there is global evidence that where employees participate in the decision-making processes of the company, performance is generally enhanced. This, in turn, directly impacts upon and improves economic productivity, generating a ‘win-win’ situation. The question of the duties of company directors and managers is attracting much attention in South Africa. With rapidly developing and changing labour legislation in South Africa, it is essential to consider the extent to which the country should reassess its traditional principles of company law and corporate governance policies in order to encourage participatory roles for employees in the workplace. It is argued that if South Africa is to improve corporate productivity levels with its re-entry into international markets, management and labour must find improved ways of dealing with one another. The main purpose of this thesis, therefore, is to propose and formulate a workable corporate governance model for South Africa – one that would be advantageous to all stakeholders, especially the employees. This is achieved by comparing and contrasting international models of corporate governance and by applying the best features of each to the unique South African corporate system of values, structures and traditions. It is suggested that the current unitary board structure operating in South Africa has become outdated and does not provide employees with rights enabling them to engage in the decision-making processes of the corporation with their employees at an adequate level. In its place, a two-tier board system of corporate governance is proposed. The economic success of a company will bring about social benefits to many stakeholder constituencies. This will not happen if the company is a financial failure. The issue of obliging directors to act primarily for the benefit of shareholders alone is questioned. Corporate governance reforms were undertaken in many parts of the world in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. This reform process questioned whether the interests of the company should be managed for the shareholders alone or for the other corporate stakeholders as well. There are many views that strongly support the idea that corporate governance should be seen as a system by which corporations are to be governed for the benefits of all stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, creditors, suppliers and the community. In this way, companies should be run as communities in partnerships with all their stakeholders. Thus, this thesis proposes that the success of a company is inextricably intertwined with a consideration of the rights and interests of its employees and other stakeholders.