The Skills Development Act, 97 of 1998

1. The Skills Development Act, 97 of 1998

2. SDA (Introduction) • Skilled workforce = essential requirement for growth of economy. Training has, therefore, become increasingly important. • Low Unemployment: • Creation of employment opportunities • Development of skilled workforce • Placement of workers in appropriate positions • SDA promotes skills development strategy, which is flexible, accessible, demand-led, decentralized, and based on partnership between public and private sectors. • Also provides for establishment of, i.a., bodies such as labour centres as well as learnerships and skills programs.

3. SDA (Skills Development Strategy) • Forms part of SA’s aims to reduce poverty, increase employment, improve international competitiveness, reduce crime and increase economic growth. • Need for: • Practical skills Ability to perform set of tasks. • Foundational skills Understanding of what one does and why one does it. • Reflexive skills Integrating performances to learn from mistakes. • Objectives of new Skills Development Strategy: • I.r.o. SA as a whole Facilitating general increase in skills profile of population; Increasing quality and quantity of intermediate skills; Facilitating applied competency levels and improvement of social and infra-structural delivery; Raising quality, relevance and cost-effectiveness of skills development. • I.r.o. the industry Facilitating more structured and targeted skills development; Increasing access to education and training; Increasing intermediate level skills within enterprises. • I.r.o. target groups Supporting groups to enter regular employment or to sustain micro-level income generating activities; Supporting the establishment of viable small and micro enterprises; Increasing access to entry-level education and training.

4. SDA (Purposes of Act) • Main purpose: Create institutional framework to implement strategies to develop skills. • Workplace is active learning environment. • Secondary purposes: • Development of skills of SA workforce: • to improve quality of life of workers, their prospects of work and labour mobility. • to improve productivity in workplace and competitiveness of employers. • to promote self-employment. • to improve the delivery of social services. • To increase investment in education and training in labour market. • To encourage employers: • to use workplace as active learning environment. • to provide employees with opportunities to acquire new skills. • to provide opportunities for new entrants to labour market to gain work experience. • to employ persons who find it difficult to be employed. • To encourage workers to participate in learning programmes. • To improve employment prospects of persons previously disadvantaged by unfair discrimination and to redress those disadvantages through training and education. • To ensure quality of learning in and for workplace. • To assist work seekers to find work, retrenched workers to re-enter labour market and employers to find qualified employees. • To provide and regulate employment services.

5. SDA (Framework) • Components of system should be linked with each other and with strategy. • NSA and DoL assists Minister in developing strategy. • NSA liaise with QCTO (Quality Council for Trades & Occupations) and Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETA); SETA implements strategy by registering skills programmes, learning programmes and learnership agreements. • DoL assisted by provincial offices of DoL and labour centres. • Other bodies such as accredited trade test centres, skills development institutes, provincial skills development forums, national artisan moderation body and PSA (Productivity SA) also play a role.

6. SDA (National Skills Authority) • Promotes strategic focus of skills development and co-ordination between different stakeholders. • Functions: • Advise Minister on national skills development policy, national skills development strategy, guidelines on implementation of the strategy, strategic framework and criteria for allocation of funds from the NSF and any regulations to be made. • Liaise with SETAs. • Report to Minister on progress made in implementation of national strategy. • Conduct necessary investigations on any matter arising out of application of Act. • Exercise powers and perform duties conferred/imposed on NSA by the Act.

7. SDA (Sector Education and Training Authorities I) • Minister may establish SETA for any national economic sector. • In determining specific sector, Minister must take into account the following: • Education and training needs of employers and employees who use similar materials, processes and technologies and who make similar products or render similar services. • Potential of sector for coherent occupational structures and career pathing. • Scope of any national strategy for economic growth and development. • Organisational structures of trade unions etc. • Consensus on sectors between stakeholders. • Financial and organizational ability. • Minister must approve constitution of SETA, which must specify trade unions, employers’ organizations and government departments in sector, number of members, election of office-bearers, establishment and functioning of committees, code of conduct, appointment of executive officer and other personnel and for determination of any dispute. • Employers and employees in sector must be equally represented on SETA. State departments, professional bodies and bargaining councils must also be represented. • Chambers may also be established. Each chamber must have equal representation of employees and employers, must perform functions delegated to it and is entitled to percentage of skills development levies as determined by Minister.

8. SDA (Sector Education and Training Authorities II) • Functions: • To develop sector skills plan within framework of national strategy. • To implement its plan. • To establish and promote learning programmes and to register agreements for learning programmes. • To approve workplace skills plans and annual training reports. • To apply for accreditation as a body monitoring education and training standards and qualifications. • To collect and disburse levies. • To liaise with NSA on national policy and strategy and its sector skills plan. • To report to DG on income and expenditure and implementation of its service level agreements. • To liaise with provincial offices and labour centres of DoL and any other education bodies to improve information regarding placement opportunities. • To liaise with provincial skills development forums on prescribed issues. • To appoint necessary personnel. • To perform any functions delegated to it by the QCTO.

9. SDA (Learnerships) • May be established by SETA if such learnership is related to occupation, includes a structured learning component and structured work experience component and will lead to SAQA-qualification. • Learnership agreement entered into between learner, employer/group of employers and accredited training provider. I.t.o. agreement: • Employer must employ learner for period specified, provide him with specified practical work experience and allow him to attend specified education and training. • Learner must work for employer and attend specified education and training. • Skills development provider, accredited by QCTO must provide specified education and training and necessary support to learner. • All learnership agreements must be registered with relevant SETA. • Learnership agreement can be terminated before specified date if learner successfully completes learnership, if SETA approves of termination or if learner, as an employee, is fairly dismissed for incapacity/misconduct. • Possible to substitute employer/skills development provider with consent of learner. • Any dispute arising from learnership agreements must be dealt with through dispute resolution procedures set out in sect 133 of LRA. • Employer and learner must enter into contract of employment if learner was not in employment of employer when learnership agreement was concluded.

10. SDA (Skills programmes) • Programme that is occupationally based and, when completed, will constitute a credit towards a qualification registered i.t.o. National Qualifications Framework. • Any person who has developed skills programme may apply to SETA for grant or to DG for subsidy. Programme may be funded if all requirements have been complied with and if it has been developed in accordance with sector skills plan and national skills strategy. • Programme will be monitored by SETA/DG, and funds may be withheld/recovered if not used for purpose they have been made available.

11. SDA (Department of Labour) • Functions of SDPU has been taken over by provincial offices and labour centres of DoL. • Must research and analyse labour market trends to determine skills development for SA as a whole, each sector of the economy and organs of State. • Must assist Minister and NSA in formulating national strategy and plans for sectors. • Must advise Minister, NSA, SETAs, education and skills development providers, skills development forums, QCTO and organs of State on skills trends and future skills needs.

12. SDA (Provincial offices and labour centres) • Functions of provincial offices i.r.o. employment services: • Plan, coordinate, support, monitor and report on activities at labour centres. • Establish skills development forum. • Maintain data-base of skills development providers. • Perform any other delegated function. • Functions of labour centres i.r.o. employment services: • Provide info to workers, employers and skills development providers and unemployed. • Register work-seekers. • Register placement opportunities. • Assist workers to enter learning programmes, to find employment, to start income-generating projects and to participate in placement programmes. • Develop plans to extend services to rural communities. • Perform any other delegated function.

13. SDA (Financing of skills development) • National Skills Fund (NSF) established by SDA. • Derives funding from 20% of levies collected in relevant sectors, levies collected from those sectors in which there is no SETA, money appropriated by Parliament, interest earned on investments and any donations. • NSF may only be approached for projects identified in national skills development strategy as national priorities or any other projects related to achievement of purpose of SDA. • DG controls Fund. • Every public service employer in national and provincial governments must budget for at least 1% of its payroll for training and education of employees.

14. SDA (Miscellaneous) • Labour Court exclusive jurisdiction i.r.o. all matters arising from SDA. • Monitoring and enforcement of SDA will be done in exactly same manner as BCEA. • Number of offences are created in Act, e.g. obstruction/undue influence of any person performing function i.t.o. SDA.

15. SDLA (Introduction) • Makes provision for compulsory levy scheme to fund education and training. • Administered by DG and Commissioner for SARS. • All employers who are not exempted from provisions of SDLA must register with Commissioner of SARS and pay prescribed monthly levy. • Employers exempted from paying levies: • Any public service employer in national/provincial sphere of government. • Any employer whose total payroll for the next 12 months will not exceed R500 000. • Any public benefit organization which solely carries on religious/charitable benefit activity or any public benefit organization which provides funds solely to such organization. • Any national/public entity if 80% or more of expenditure is defrayed from funds voted by Parliament. (like SABS) • Any municipality i.r.o. which certificate of exemption has been granted. • Levy payable by employer is 1% of employer’s payroll (monthly). • Leviable amount includes all remuneration paid to employers and all alternative remuneration. Pension, superannuation allowance or retiring allowance is excluded. • Levies must be paid to Commissioner of SARS within 7 days after end of each month.

16. SDLA (Payment of grants) • Regulations published by Minister make provision that employers who are up to date with payment of skills levy can claim grants from their SETA. • The following are the six different grants which may be claimed by employer: • Workplace skill grant. • Workplace skill implementation grant. • Grant towards costs of learnerships and learner allowances. • Grant towards costs of skills programmes. • Grant towards costs of providing apprenticeship training. • Grant towards a programme, project or research activity that helps relevant SETA to implement sector skills plan.

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