The true meaning of employment equity transcends merely complying with legislation. Refer to the Employment Equity Act [No. 55 of 1998] (labour.gov.za). Companies that take employment equity seriously and do not just “tick boxes” are making a substantial positive contribution towards the socio-economic fabric of the country. They are also playing a meaningful role in the transformation of the South African economy.
True employment equity also builds stronger businesses. Treating employees fairly enables you to attract the best talent to your team. When employees are treated equally, they also feel valued and are, therefore, more loyal and likely to stay with their employers. Moreover, they are happier workers who are motivated to always give their best. This facilitates high levels of productivity and efficiency.
Skills development is an important way of developing inclusive workplaces that are able to harness South Africa’s rich diversity. It equips your employees with the skills that they need to perform at their best. In this way, they are able to grow and develop their careers and as individuals. For many low skilled employees, adult basic education and training is the first step that they will take as part of a lifelong learning journey. Equipped with foundational English literacy and numeracy skills, they can continue acquiring knowledge. This is to the benefit of themselves, their employers, the economy and South African society at large.
Employment equity starts at the bottom
True employment equity should start at the bottom of the company organogram and make its way to the top. It is your low skilled employees who perform mundane but essential work who need skills development and training opportunities the most. Without basic skills, including English literacy and numeracy, they will never be able to rise up the ranks. This is so that they can assume more responsibility and, with it, secure and better paid employment. Their lack of English literacy and numeracy skills also negatively affects their ability to perform in just about every facet of their lives outside the workplace.
Low skilled employees are, therefore. a critical focus area of any robust employment equity plan. Unlike B-BBEE, employment equity focuses on black people on all occupational levels, and it also encompasses women and people with disabilities.
Fundamental literacy and numeracy skills can be imparted quickly and efficiently. This is via quality adult basic education and training by a reputable adult literacy training and adult numeracy training provider.
Employment Equity Act
The Employment Equity Act and Skills Development Act [No. 97 of 1998] (www.gov.za) work hand in hand. Workplace skills plans and reports on their implementation are integrated with employment equity initiatives. Meanwhile, employment Equity reports are compiled and submitted to the authorities to claim back Skills Development Levies.
Skills development is an integral driver of redress. Adult basic education and training in particular has been identified as one of the most important means available to specifically rectify past discrimination and inequalities. Refer to https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/201409/2003educationpolicydocumentabet0.pdf for more information on government’s stance on adult literacy training and numeracy. This document also reaffirms government’s commitment to quality adult literacy training and adult numeracy training.
Equipping low skilled employees with basic English literacy and numeracy skills via quality adult basic education and training has never been more important than now. This is considering rising inequality that is also being fuelled by a widening income gap between the vast majority of South Africans and a few citizens of the country. Worryingly, earnings are also racialised, gendered and spatialised in the country – a stubborn legacy of a previous system. The real wages of the bottom 10% of earners have declined, shrinking by a quarter between 2011 and 2015. At the same time, median incomes have declined by 15%. Yet, the earnings of the top 2% increased by 15% over this period. Meanwhile, the incomes of South Africans that make up the top 1% increased by 48%. For more reading on the subject, refer to https://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/Report-03-10-19/Report-03-10-192017.pdf.
Employment equity is a solution
Employment equity is a sustainable solution to a growing problem.
To help solve the problem, government has implemented a National Minimum Wage. However, it has been criticised because it artificially raises wages while overlooking the real cause of the problem. This is the lack of critical skills that are actually needed to grow and develop the economy. Many believe that a National Minimum Wage will actually thwart economic growth by raising already high input costs, which includes the price of labour. It will also have no positive effect on high unemployment and job security for people who perform unskilled work. A National Minimum Wage may even aggravate the situation, according to some experts.
Many agree that the focus should rather be on increasing skills development and training. This includes quality adult basic education and training, including adult literacy training and adult numeracy training, which is targeted specifically at people who do not have basic skills.
There is a school of thought that actually encourages South Africa to focus on better harnessing its abundance of cost-effective low skilled labour in the short term. According to Prof Brian Kantor, business must be encouraged to hire unskilled workers, especially at an entry level. By training them over time, these unskilled workers would be able to move into more skilled positions and earn higher wages. Individuals, businesses and the economy would all gain over time, he reasons. It will also help to absorb the many unemployed South Africans who do not have skills and working experience into the economy. Prof Kantor encourages this solution as an alternative to the National Minimum Wage. Refer to his paper on this subject http://bit.ly/2zA9Pvm.
Employment equity addresses skills shortages
Employment equity addresses skills shortages that are leading to this growing disparity in earnings. There is currently a significant over supply of unskilled and semi-skilled labour and an acute shortage of advanced proficiencies. The jobs of many unskilled and semi-skilled workers are, therefore, increasingly at risk. This is not to mention the numerous unskilled and semi-skilled South Africans who are currently unemployed, many of whom are young adults and women. They have already been side lined because they do not have the skills that they need to participate in a modern economy.
This has placed a significant strain on already-stretched government resources that could be better spent on other critical areas as opposed to welfare grants for the poor and unemployed. Government is now also considering introducing a Basic Income Grant to address growing inequality. This will only place additional strain on resources. According to Statistics South Africa’s latest Quarterly Labour Survey, nearly one out of every five semi-skilled jobs that existed before COVID-19 have been lost. They include sales staff, craft and related trades, clerks, as well as plant and machine operators. This is in addition to skilled agricultural workers, which is especially worrying considering the many low skilled employees who rely on this industry for a livelihood.
Employees who have completed adult basic education and training are able to successfully use their English literacy and numeracy skills to climb the ladder and into middle-skills. These provide greater job security and better paying employment.
Employment equity improves company performance
Employment equity improves the sustainability of a company and its performance. This is the reason that so many companies choose to partner Triple E Training for their adult basic education and training requirements. The company has been providing adult literacy training and adult numeracy training to industry for more than 30 years. Over this period, its adult basic education and training has adapted and evolved to suit the unique needs of many different industries. Triple E Training remains proud of the many thousands of employees working across a broad spectrum of industries that it has equipped with fundamental English literacy and numeracy skills.
Low skilled labour can actually cost you more, in terms of lower output, missed deadlines, as well as slow order fulfilment or job completion. This is because low skilled employees are less productive than workers who have specific proficiencies. At the most basic level, employees need to be able to communicate effectively in both the written and spoken word. They also need to be able to read with understanding and listen actively. Basic numeracy skills have also become increasingly important in the modern workplace. These skills enable employees to think logically and critically to solve typical problems that they would encounter in the workplace.
There is also a close correlation between health and safety and workplace literacy skills. Workplace literacy encompasses both English literacy and numeracy. Accidents caused by unskilled workers can potentially result in costly legal claims, fines or penalties. This is in addition to your company’s reputation and that of its brands.
Learn more about Triple E Training and our quality adult literacy training and adult numeracy training solutions. www.eee.co.za.
