The root of all evil in South Africa remains unemployment. While the global unemployment figure amongst youths is 12.6%, a massive 35.9% of South African youths aged between 15 and 24 are unemployed. This alarming number is exacerbated in the traditional township setting, where youths struggle to make their way to the cities to find formal employment.
The Gauteng provincial government has been at the forefront of tackling this challenge over the past 4 years. In 2012, the GPG joined forces with Lulaway in an effort to provide the youth in the townships with prospects beyond their limited borders. Lulaway operated an innovative job centre model whereby any existing infrastructure could become a vehicle of job opportunities for the local youth.
The start of it all…..
The Gauteng Department of Social Development committed to dedicate 20 existing government infrastructures to provide the youth in the various townships in Gauteng access to the job opportunities that Lulaway had on offer. These infrastructures were upgraded and equipped to operate as Lulaway / DSD job centres, with new staff members trained to register and upload job seekers on to the Lulaway database.
These job centres created an accessible avenue for job seekers to get noticed by employers. Every job available entailed a series of job specific screening assessments that gave employers an indication of the skill sets of the applicant. These competency assessments ensured an equitable process as candidates were selected based on their capacity and not on their ability to navigate the job market or know the right people.
Scaling up with Tshepo 500 000
In June 2012, MEC Nandi Mayathula-Khoza launched the first of the government funded job centres in Gauteng. Now in 2016, with a successful track record of thousands of job seekers applying for jobs at the job centres and securing employment, she is back to launch the 100th Tshepo 500 000 opportunity/job centre.
Addressing corporate concerns that employing untried and untested youth adds to the risk inherent in the uptake of new employees, the government has pledged to play an active role in streamlining the screening, training and employment process of new entrants to the job market. Among media, dignitaries and community members, a stone throw away from the freedom square where the freedom charter was signed, The MEC opened the Kliptown job centre today. This job centre is the 100th of 200 job centres that form part of the ‘Gauteng Tshepo 500 000 Programme’. Aimed at screening, training, upskilling and mentoring 500 000 young people in the Gauteng region over the next 3 years (2016 – 2019).
Lulaway Chairman Andile Nkhosana says; “by teaming up with the provincial government we are now scaling up the first innovative service to South African companies looking to hire the right employees in the most cost and time-effective manner. We are providing South African corporates with direct access to screened entry-level and semi-skilled workers, while addressing labour market inefficiencies in South Africa within the grassroots and blue collar labour market.”
”According to the latest South African quarterly labour force survey, 44% of ‘New Entrants’ into the job market, accounted for 44% of the total unemployment figure of 4 526 000 and 70.1% are aged between 15 and 34,” he adds.
By equipping employers with their own web portal on the Lulaway site, companies are able to quickly and effectively access information on potential employees who have already passed a screening process. Having placed over 15 000 young people via the first 20 job centres, the province is taking the partnership to the next level by opening a staggering 200 job centres across the province by the end of this financial year.
100 Tshepo 500 000 job centres already in operation
The Tshepo 500 000 programme aims to provide 500 000 job opportunities over the next 3 years. The job centres are seen as a mechanism to tie in all opportunities across the province and provide a fair, transparent and simple application mechanism that will allow any young person to apply to any opportunity available. This allows for the streamlining of employment creation efforts across the province, and will enable effective roll-out of various training and mentoring activities from one central place.
The opportunity now exists to employ a better calibre person while allowing the youth of the country access to a better life by becoming formally employed.
Tick tock, tick tock ……..
The South African Quarterly Labour Force Survey, Quarter 1, 2012 can be found at http://www.statssa.gov.za/
ORIGINAL SOURCE: CRAVING NOVITY
