MBA & MM Theses

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THE ROLE OF CHAMBER COMMITTEES IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SECTOR SKILLS PLAN AT merSETA
(2013-10-14) MORAPEDI, HOSEA MATSUOE
The Skills Development Act of 1998 was introduced to usher in the new skills development trajectory in the post 1994 SA. SETAs, intermediary bodies, were established to oversee processes for the development and implementation of Sector Skills Plans, an important instrument for industry skills planning through the mobilisation of industry stakeholder sub-sectoral – Chamber committees. These interventions were meant, through SSP processes tailored to respond to industry skills shortages, to contribute in increasing productivity at workplaces and, in the process, create economic opportunities to address poverty, unemployment and inequality in the country. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of SSPs from the merSETA Chamber Committee perspective. The analysis of the findings points at the existence of complexities and gaps in respect to the planning, implementation and the evaluation of the SSP. The analysis further suggests a need for a revised and a much more industry specific and policy aligned SSP process, with clearly defined outcomes and appropriately designed implementation, monitoring and evaluation tools for maximum and inclusive participation for enhancing ownership, and buy-in into the process by the participating industry stakeholders.
FUTURE INCOME THROUGH SKILLS AND TRAINING IN EXPANDED PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME
(2013-10-14) MTOLO, JABU GOODNESS
Currently not all Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) beneficiaries manage to secure future jobs and earn income after exiting the programme. The purpose of conducting this research was to investigate why most Working for Water programme (WFW) beneficiaries do not secure future employment after exiting the programme. This investigation was conducted using a qualitative paradigm and semistructured interviews for data collection. The findings indicated that WFW beneficiaries struggle to find other job opportunities because training and skills provided by the WFW programme are not relevant and appropriate. It has been concluded that the nature and scope of training provided by the WFW programme, combined with failure of the South African economy to create job opportunities, are the main contributing factors to the nonemployment of beneficiaries exiting the programme. Hence the recommendations emphasise the importance of entrepreneurship and business skills which are accompanied by support programmes to ensure sustainable alignment of WFW training with the labour market, as well as a review of the duration of participation in the programme to allow enough time for proper training.
MENTORING IN THE VUK’UPHILE PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME
(2012-10-08) NJOKO, MUZIWOKUTHULA
Skills shortages in the construction industry is well known, to remedy the situation government as a participant in the industry has come up with programmes to mentor young people who are interested in the industry. The purpose of this study was to determine if mentorship can be relied upon to improve the skills shortages in the construction industry. The study was conducted on the Vuk’uphile public works programme. One of the main findings of the research was that formal mentoring is best suited to get the desired results. The research also established that implementing a mentorship programme has to involve all stakeholders from the onset and the target for mentorship is well defined. Mentoring is costly; as such the beneficiaries must pay for the skills gained in the programme.
Key Factors Impacting the Chemical Engineering Skill Pool in the South African Economy
(2012-10-05) Gina, Dumisa Cornelius
For many years South Africa was isolated from the world economy by political sanctions. This period crippled the ability of the economy to compete at a global level. The year 1994 marked the end of these trade sanctions and the beginning of international trade. South Africa had to start producing enough goods to supply the local market as well as export to other countries and to compete efficiently in this new arena. These productivity initiatives had to be supported by the right set of processing skills. Chemical engineering is at the heart of any large-scale industrial production. This study explores the key factors that impact on the chemical engineering skill pool in the South African economy. Interviews were conducted by the researcher with leaders in the South African chemical engineering industry as well as lead chemical engineering researchers in the country. A semi-structured interview schedule was used. The research showed that the key factors that impact on the chemical engineering skill pool in the South African economy are:gender stereotypes; inadequate contact between engineers through professional bodies; poor quality of teaching maths and science at school level; poor career guidance systems; poor marketing of the career at school and university level; poor funding and subsidies from government and the private sector; improper government policies and practices; poor remuneration for chemical engineers; and a lack of the right role models for scholars. Other factors identified include: HIV/AIDS infection; poverty; the nature of the chemical engineering work environment; the poor communication skills of previously disadvantaged students; the poor culture of learning; inadequate government leadership and co-ordination strategies; poor skills transfer and mentorship systems; as well as equity considerations, given the country’s history. The government has the ultimate role to put a proper structure in place to enable economic development. There is also a need for the government to engage all stakeholders in developing socio-political systems, economic systems, and legal systems to address the chemical engineering skills shortage in the country.
INVESTIGATION INTO THE LEVEL OF SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AT TELKOM AFTER PRIVATIZATION
(2011-10-24) MOFOKENG, LOUIS
The skills profile of South African workers does not match current or future market needs and contributes to poor performance by industries. The purpose of the research was to investigate whether Telkom has been able to utilize the opportunity of privatization to assist in empowering its workforce with skills training for the benefit of the company‟s growth. Documentary analysis was at the foremost of the methodological approach in this research. The findings indicate the existence of a number of training initiatives for skills development. Telkom expenditure on skills development is the highest in the sector from 2004 to 2007. It is therefore imperative for Telkom to continue to improve on skills development initiatives in the context of global competition and to fulfil the call by government for all South African companies to invest in skills programmes.
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES
(2011-06-23) Tsotetsi, Thabiso Paulus
Post 1994 a plethora of workshops and train programmes were offered to provide principals with opportunities to develop their management and leadership skills; and with the implementation of the Skills Development Act, No. 97 of 1998 and the Skills Development Levies Act, No. 9 of 1999, government intended to afford these opportunities to all employees including school principals. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the impact of the training and formal accredited skills development programmes; whether principals were benefiting from the skills development legislation; and also to find out what their recommendations were regarding their skills development. The main two findings of the research were that the in-house training by mode of workshops and formal accredited skills development programmes had very little impact; and that principals were not benefiting from the skills development legislation. It was also established that principals regarded their continuous skills development as being important
LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE PUBLIC WORKS
(2011-06-09) Reddy, Myan
The debate in South Africa on the high unemployment rate has always been coupled with the issue that the country had inherited a very low skills base subsequent to the apartheid regime. Government officially launched the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) in 2003 which was implemented in Provinces in 2004, as one of the short to medium term measures to combat unemployment. A key element of skills development was attached to these programmes. The aim of my research was to explore the skills acquired by the end beneficiaries employed on the Government’s Public Works Programme. The Soshanguve Working for Wetlands Project was used as a case study. Aside from being identified as an EPWP, the choice of utilising the Wetlands Project as a case study was also as a result of a skills component being an essential aspect to the Project from its very inception in 2000. The main findings of this research was that it was difficult to implement the legislative provisions for training in EPWPs, production was prioritised over training, the training did not translate into better employability opportunities for the end beneficiaries, scheduling of training and the high illiteracy rate of end beneficiaries were important factors that excluded them from participation. Moreover integration challenges existed between the various planning and implementing role-players. The implication of this is that some of these factors ultimately impacted negatively on the provision of the training and also contributed towards the training being ineffectual in the longer-term.
Skills Development in the Gauteng
(2011-04-19) RAMAPEPE, SIMON
As part of its broad strategy to tackle rising unemployment, poverty and to facilitate black economic empowerment, the South African government resolved to promote skills development in the workplace. To this end, the national skills development strategy was introduced. This policy came at a time when organisations were battling to increase productivity in the workplace, due to skills shortage. This hampered economic growth and social development in South Africa. The purpose of this research was to examine the implementation of skills programmes for an empowerment company in the Gauteng construction industry. The study used qualitative research methodology. It was established that management showed optimism regarding the implementation of skills plans, whilst workers felt that practical training and financial incentives lacked. It was concluded that skills development is impeded by poor planning and implementation processes. As a result, it was recommended that these be revised and aligned to improve service delivery
IMPACT OF SKILLS SHORTAGE ON
(2011-04-19) MMBOYI, Azwi
For many years, people in the Vhembe District Municipality have been experiencing shortage of water even during heavy rainfall seasons. They often blame the dry season when they experience water shortage but they become confused when the situation persists during heavy rain. Little did they know that water shortage in the area is mainly caused by the shortage of skilled people who are responsible for the water supply to the community. This exploratory study investigates the impact of skills shortage on water provision in the Vhembe District Municipality (VDM). The research focuses more on factors that influence the lack of knowledge, experience and skills within the water project and further try to seek interventions in addressing these challenges in order to ensure that high quality water is supplied to the people of Vhembe. The researcher made use of the qualitative method to obtain detailed information about the challenges that VDM is facing in the provisioning of quality of water to the community. The study revealed that shortage of skills in South Africa contributes extensively to poor service delivery particularly at the municipal level. The situation is exacerbated by the slow pace at which educational institutions produce engineers in South Africa. The study further revealed that rural municipalities like VDM are more vulnerable and likely to lose skilled engineers due to their geographical location and poor salaries. Lastly, recommendations were made in the closing chapter for the VDM to strengthen its technical staff in order to render quality services to the people.
The design and implementation of Workplace Skills Plans in South Africa
(2011-04-18) Diez, Monique
Workplace Skills Plans form part of the compliance requirement aligned to the objectives of the Skills Development Act (No. 97 of 1998). South African employers are required to submit a completed Workplace Skills Plan to the Sector Education Training Authority which represents their sector of business. Successful submission of a Workplace Skills Plan qualifies employers for a disbursement of levies paid to the Sector Education Training Authorities via SARS. The value of Workplace Skills Plans is in question as the design and implementation processes are arduous and time-consuming. The principles of effective training are often found to be left wanting when the basis of information against which Workplace Skills Plans are designed and implemented is considered. This is a qualitative study including multiple case studies in which structured interviews were held with three South African organisations, all participating in the levy-grant scheme set up by the Skills Development Levies Act (No. 9 of 1999). Thematic analysis was then utilised to establish commonalities in the feedback obtained. The case study findings indicate that organisations do not consider the Workplace Skills Plan a valuable document and rarely ensure that their organisational strategy is aligned with either the Sector Education Training Authority‟s sector skills plan or the National Skills Development Strategy. There must be a clear linkage between the National Skills Development Strategy, SETA Sector Skills Plans and organisational strategies in order to align these and ensure successful design and implementation of Workplace Skills Plans

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