Case Study: Triple E provides Rock solid AET for aggregate and sand producer - Triple e Training

Case Study: Triple E provides Rock solid AET for aggregate and sand producer

Rock solid AET for aggregate and sand producer

A leading construction materials supplier prefers appointing an expert to navigate the involved and complicated requirements of the human resources development component of its social labour plan (SLP). In this way, it can focus on its core activity which is to win quality building material for civil construction and building contractors.

By partnering Triple E Training, the company continues to ensure that it honours its commitment to developing communities that reside within its quarrying footprint. This requirement of the Mineral Resources and Petroleum Development Act is one of the measures used to award mining rights to companies. An SLP is a binding contract between government and mining companies that is updated and resubmitted every five years. Mining rights can be revoked if it has been found that miners have not honoured their many commitments during the period under review. This is a way of ensuring that all citizens share in South Africa’s vast mineral wealth and not only mining companies. Even the winning of aggregate and sand, the basis of any infrastructure and building project, is subjected to these strict requirements.

The human resources development component of a SLP is geared specifically at developing the skills of existing employees and those of unemployed individuals who reside within labour-sending areas or host communities. However, complying with this requirement entails more than just equipping individuals with skills. Mines also need to detail how employees will progress to more senior positions within the company. As a further requirement, employees need to be paired with mentors to facilitate upward mobility, again ensuring that training is not just a “tick-box” exercise. Many mining employees and members of communities located within the mining footprint start their learning journey by first completing quality adult education and training (AET) facilitated by a widely acknowledged leader in the field.

Drilling down the details

A notoriously complex and onerous process, community AET is best left to an expert in the field. Even large mines with extensive resources prefer to outsource this non-core but essential aspect of their operations to an expert.

To ensure buy-in, all stakeholders need to be involved in project planning. They include the affected communities and their traditional leaders who should also be consulted when

identifying suitable candidates for the programme. These prospects then need to be interviewed to confirm their suitability and undergo a literacy and numeracy skills assessment to determine at which AET level they will start the training. Various other recruitment channels usually also have to be explored to ensure that participation targets are achieved.

Community expectations also need to be managed carefully to avoid conflict as this has scuppered many well-planned community upliftment initiatives. This while also being very aware of political agendas that are not aligned to the objectives of the training programme. One of the biggest mistakes made by mining companies is to exclude communities from SLP planning. The socio-economic factors are just as important as political and business buy-in for projects such as these.

A suitable venue for the training also has to found. It needs to be conveniently located in the community so that all learners can easily attend classes on time without incurring high transport costs. Furthermore, it must provide an environment that is conducive to learning. Bear in mind that many of the community learning centres in the country are dilapidated, hence the poor performance of government-driven AET.

The training also needs to be relevant and facilitated by a qualified educator with specific experience teaching adults, many of whom may have learning disorders or overall negative perceptions of education.

Then there is the extensive administration involved in successfully closing-out these projects. This includes completing and submitting extensive documentation to the relevant authorities by deadline for evaluation and record keeping.

A win-win situation for miner and host communities

This aggregate and sand miner knows that its community AET initiatives are always in good hands when Triple E Training is involved. It takes its responsibility towards the many communities that reside within its large national footprint very seriously. With quarries located in many business nodes and leveraging the expertise of a leading AET provider, our client is expanding access to quality adult education, which is also a basic human right enshrined in the South African Constitution and one of the Millenium Sustainable Development Goals.

Learn more about Triple E Training and how we are helping miners uplift communities. www.eee.co.za

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Unlock the Full Potential of Your Employees. Leave your details & our team get back to you.

Note: Please be assured that all personal data submitted is handled with the utmost confidentiality & will only be used for the purpose of addressing your inquiries.