ON-THE-JOB TRAINING
I
t’s depressing to think that you may end up being just another statistic among the country’s 4.9-million unemployed masses. But there are actually jobs out there – you just need to know where they are, how to look for them and how to get yourself trained up for them. And this is where the SETAs come in: they aim to develop people’s skills through hands-on workplace experience. You may have heard of the SETAs but are unsure what they’re all about. Don’t worry – you’re not alone. The SETAs are South Africa’s Sector Education and Training Authorities, and there are currently 21 of them. Basically, there is a SETA for every sector of the economy, focusing on boosting the skills sets and abilities needed in that particular area through practical workplace training. So, for example, there is a SETA that covers agriculture, and another one dealing with banking. There’s a SETA encompassing health and welfare, one dealing with insurance, one focusing on food and beverages, and so on. These SETAs have to develop sector skills plans that tie in with the National Skills Development Strategy – a roadmap of the skills needed to rev up the engine of the economy.
History of the SETAs Before 2000, there were 33 industry training boards in South Africa. They mainly covered apprenticeships. Then the government passed the Skills Development Act, which outlined the new SETA system. The aim was to develop a series of skills plans for each sector, to identify the trends, the in-demand skills and the training priorities. Each sector is made up of related and complementary economic activities. The main difference between the old and new systems is the SETAs’ expanded focus on learnerships, internships, skills programmes and apprenticeships. There were 23 SETAs to begin with, but they have since been juggled to better meet the needs of the economy, and today there are 21 such bodies. They used to fall under the Department of Labour, but are now the responsibility of the Department of Higher Education and Training.
What do the SETAs do? ■ They help school-leavers gain much-needed skills in their chosen field ■ They help those already in the workplace to add to their skills ■ They function as quality controllers, accrediting education and training providers and ensuring these institutions do their job properly ■ They draw up sector skills plans to identify priorities for skills development in each area of the economy ■ Thanks to the skills levies they collect, the SETAs create and fund learnerships with employers
What is a learnership? ■ A learnership is similar to an apprenticeship – it combines practical on-the-job workplace training with theoretical knowledge. In other words, you learn while you earn. The main difference is that apprenticeships are associated with so-called blue-collar trades, while learnerships also prepare people for jobs in professional and service-related careers. ■ Learnerships are outcomes-based and are linked to a specific occupation or field of work, such as electrical engineering, hairdressing or project management. You will receive a qualification registered with the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) at the end of your learnership. ■ Learnerships provide easy access to learning and help young people gain a formal qualification. ➲
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