It is extremely unsettling to see the number of South Africa’s youth that are unemployed. Now more than ever, it is evident that more focus needs to be placed on facilitating the youth in entering the job market without a formal tertiary qualification, allowing them the opportunity to contribute positively to the country’s economy.
The job market is a competitive one, with the requirements of gaining first time employment becoming more out of reach for many young South Africans especially for people with disabilities
This is where the importance and value of learnerships becomes evident. Although legislative requirements such as the Skills Development Act and the B-BBEE Codes of Good Practice drive companies to implement learnerships, there are other, more important reasons and benefits of implementing a learnership.
For South African businesses, a learnership model could be the answer to addressing the critical skills gap that exists in various industries and help combat unemployment. A learnership is an accredited training programme that runs for a minimum of 12 months and ends with the learner achieving a qualification after the completion of the programme.
The learnership model is most effective when the learner’s training and/or qualification stream is directly related to the requirements of their job. This allows the learner to develop the critical skills needed in the industry and overcome the skills shortage experienced in South Africa.
What are the benefits to the learner?
- Provides a way to earn a salary (monthly stipend) while studying.
- Increase chances to further employment opportunities
- Provides easy access to formal learning
- Gain valuable workplace experience (learnerships consist of both theoretical and practical components and thus, provides a truly meaningful way of learning)
What are the benefits to the employer?
- It provides the organization with the opportunity to grow their own talent.
- Learnerships aid in reaching your Employment Equity targets
- Improve your organisation’s competitiveness by gaining valuable B-BBEE points.
- Your business can benefit on the available learnership Tax Break and Employment Tax Incentive.
What is the role of learnerships in youth unemployment?
Learnerships promote access to education and training, as they allow members of the youth to work and get started on their careers while also studying for an educational qualification.
At Summit we strive to implement three shifts that organisations need to build resilience:
- Building skills
- Developing workforce skills to master short term needs
- Focusing on formal training and traditional education methods
We strive to work with businesses to find the best learnership solution for their business. Incorporating a learnership model into your business is key in reducing South Africa’s distressing unemployment rate and provide hope and opportunity to the many jobless youths yearning for a brighter future.
When we work with our clients we focus on their future workforce, offering them unemployed learnerships thereby creating value for both parties and reaching learners in the flow of work.
Contact us today to find out more about our face to face, blended and tax benefit payment models available to our clients.