What is a Learnership and its BBBEE Benefits?
Investing in learnerships is vital for obtaining those much-needed BEE points for Skills Development. When done correctly, a learnership can create many additional benefits for not only you, but everyone involved. You can receive numerous tax breaks and benefits, increase productivity amongst your staff or create a lasting impact on the lives of your students. It is therefore important for you to understand learnerships completely, so it becomes less of a check box for your scorecard, and more of a process that works for your business in the long run.
What is a learnership?
A learnership is an accredited work-based learning programme designed to educate individuals with theoretical and practical skills for the workplace.
Learnerships aim to give previously disadvantaged groups and individuals the knowledge and experience they need to confidently enter the workplace. Therefore, accredited learnerships involve occupation-based skills that add value to your business. Once completed, students receive a nationally recognised certificate that is registered with the National Qualifications Framework (NQF).
Examples of Learnerships can include:
What is the standard learnership duration?
From a business aspect, this programme is a contract that legally binds the learner, employer, and training provider involved. In a case where the individual is unemployed, the learnership will mean that they are employed with the employer for the duration of their training, in most cases this duration is a 12-month period.
The Difference between learnerships and internships:
Another form of training to know about is internships. Both learnerships and internships provide students with valuable work experience that can set them up for long, fulfilling careers. However, internships focus specifically on providing students with practical work experience and often don’t include a theoretical component run by an accredited training provider. Usually, internships give undergraduates real work experience they can use to advance in their careers.
What is the purpose of learnerships?
The South African government established learnerships as part of it’s transformation strategy post-apartheid. This was to give employed, unemployed, disabled or previously disadvantaged groups, such as black South Africans an equal opportunity to quality education so they can be a part of the growth of the South African economy.
Other reasons for establishing learnerships in South Africa are:
- To address high unemployment rates and promote economic growth by developing the skills of the workforce
- To improve the quality of education and training by linking it to industry needs and standards
- To promote lifelong learning and provide a pathway for further education and career advancement
- To address the skills gap in critical industries and sectors, such as manufacturing, mining, and technology
What are the BBBEE benefits of a learnership?
While investing time and money into your scorecard can feel like a hassle at times, when done correctly your business can reap many benefits from the BBBEE process. This means:
- You could receive 20 BBBEE points that would improve your BEE scorecard and potentially increase your status level
- You could receive 5 BBBEE bonus points for adsorbing unemployed learners into your staff
- You could claim Learnership Tax Incentives that are up to R120 000 for each learner that successfully completes their learnership
- You could receive monthly Employment Tax Incentives or ETI for every hired employee between the age of 18 to 29
- You could create a pool of individuals that have the knowledge and work experience needed to push your company forward
- Students would be given the opportunity to earn an income, improve their skills and gain practical or work place experience
- You could improve your employment equity targets by upskilling previously unemployed or disadvantaged employees
- You would contribute to the growth of the South African economy by educating its people and giving them the opportunity to enter the workplace
What is the function of SETA?
There would be no learnerships without SETA’s. Each learnership is managed by Sector Education Training Authorities or SETA for short. This institution ensures that learnerships are of high quality and suit international standards. The material is structured so that it is recognized nationally which allows students to get a job in any province with any employer.
There are about 23 different SETAs within South Africa. Each SETA falls within a specific industry and is responsible for creating, managing, and implementing training programmes within its sector. Examples of SETA’s include MICTSETA which runs media and ICT training and SERVICES SETA which runs training in services sectors including management and business.
SETA’s carry out the following functions:
- The development and implementation of a skills plan for their sector
- Developing, managing and promoting learnerships
- Supporting the implementation of NQF
- Accrediting training providers and making sure material is followed correctly
- Registering assessors and agreements for learnerships
- Perform all functions that are requested by QCTO
- Payout levies collected from employers and their sector
- Collaborate with the National Skills Authority (NSA) on strategy, sector skills plan and policy
Here is a list of SETAs.
Who qualifies for learnerships?
To get your learnership process started there are a few requirements to keep in mind. You can put an individual that is currently on your staff on a learnership, or you can sponsor a learner that is previously disadvantaged, unemployed or disabled.
These learners need to fall within specific demographics to qualify. They need to be between the ages of 18 to 29, have South African citizenship, and be of African, Coloured or Indian descent. These students have completed matric or may have prior education or experience in the field that they are applying for. Luckily, Edge Training has an extensive database of potential learners that we can source and interview to make the application process easier for you.
What are the requirements for a learnership?
Additionally, we require specific documentation to correctly register an individual on a learnership.
For students that are already employed on your staff, they will need to provide their highest qualification, ID, proof of disability (if applicable), SARS Tax number and a bank statement or proof of account. You can give this to the training provider directly.
For unemployed students wishing to apply for a learnership, they will need to provide their CV, highest qualification, ID, proof of disability (if applicable), SARS Tax number and a bank statement or proof of account to the training provider they’d wish to study at.
Once these have all been approved and the learner is accepted, they will need to sign two legal documents:
The first is a Learnership Agreement. This is a formal agreement that is signed by the learner, the company that is employing the learner, and the training provider. This agreement outlines the rights and responsibilities of these three parties during the learnership period.
The second is an employment contract. This applies to companies that are sponsoring an unemployed or disabled learner. This is a contract that is offered by the employer to the learner for the duration of the learnership.
How do learnerships work?
As mentioned earlier, a learner will need to complete theoretical and practical components to successfully finish their learnership.
For the theoretical component, learners complete various written tasks, assignments, and projects. These are all outcome-based. This means that learners are tested at various stages of their learnership rather than being assessed for everything at the end of the learnership period.
Students already on your staff may complete their theory at the location of your company. A Skills Development facilitator from the training provider will come to your office to facilitate their progress. If this doesn’t work for you, Edge Training offers learnerships online. We have our own learning platform that is easy to use and adaptable to every learning style. For unemployed learners, they will complete their theory at the location of the training provider.
The practical aspect of the learnership is for the learner to practice what they have learned and to gain valuable work experience. This takes place at the location of the employer of the learnership. It includes hands-on training with a mentor.
View our training methodology below:
Can a learnership be terminated?
In some cases, yes it can be terminated. This can be done in the following situations:
- The learner is fairly dismissed from the employer based on reasons that relate to the learner’s conduct as an employee
- The duration of the learnership has been completed
- The employer and learner have agreed to terminate the learnership agreement or the SETA that registered the agreement requests termination
What happens after the learnership is completed?
Once the student has successfully completed their learnership, they will receive a nationally recognised NQF registered qualification. To celebrate, we hold graduation events for our students where we formally hand over their qualification certificates and setup a photoshoot to document the graduation day.
After the completion of the learnership, you can then decide whether you want to keep this individual or group of individuals on your staff going forward. This process is known as absorption. You can gain 5 bonus points on your scorecard for absorbing students into your company. To find out more about absorption, read this blog.
Examples of Learnerships to choose from:
With so many different industries in business, there are various learnerships for you to choose from. This means that you can choose a learnership that will benefit the skills sector of your specific business.
Some of our latest learnerships in training and development include:
1. Freight Forwarding and Customs Compliance Learnership
If you operate within the Transport and Logistics field a Freight Forwarding and Customs Compliance Learnership may be just what you need.
Our Freight Forwarding and Customs Compliance Learnership provides a solid foundation for learners that are currently in or wishing to enter into the Travel and Logistics field. They will learn about the Customs and Excise Act, understand international trade and logistics, process Surface Freight and learn communication and numeracy skills needed in the workplace. When completed, students can use this qualification to study further and apply for jobs within the Travel and Logistics industry.
2. Business Administration Learnership
If you’re unsure which learnership fits within your niche, Business Administration is a good option to choose as business administration is useful for any business.
Our Business Administration NQF Level 3 learnership focuses on skills such as information handling, communications, enterprise or customer service, technology, organisational skills, self-development teamwork and business policies and procedures.
This knowledge can open the door to various occupations for the learner. This includes Reception, Executive Administration, Financial Services and Banking, Legal Administration and Human Resources.
3. Information Technology: End User Computing Learnership
Another valuable option to consider is End User Computing. Being able to use a computer is important for the daily functioning of any business. It can give your company the competitive edge it needs, make your workflows run smoothly and improve business communication.
Our Information Technology: End User Computing Learnership teaches your staff all the industry-standard software skills they need. This includes Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, Access and Excel training on our very own online platform. Additionally, they will learn how to send emails on Outlook, communicate correctly online, and apply web-based applications.
Completing this learnership not only addresses your business needs but creates opportunities for students to further their education in this field and apply for various job positions within the End User Computing industry.
How to identify skill gaps in your company:
Even with all the necessary information available to you, choosing the right learnership can feel difficult. To make this easier, choose a learnership that addresses a major skills gap in your company. This will greatly benefit your company now and in the future.
To do this you can conduct a Skills Gap Analysis. This involves collecting as much data as you can about the current skills of your employees and determining if they align with the goals of your company. You can do this by looking at KPIs, employee assessments, performance benchmarking, and more. Another simple tactic you can use is to talk to your managers. They will know what skills training they need to make their teams as effective and productive as possible. This can also include asking reliable employees for their recommendations and feedback. Lastly, talking to your training provider can also help you with this process.
Next Steps:
With all the benefits in mind, you may be ready to put an individual on a learnership. To make sure you maximize your points while adding value to your business you can reach out to Edge Training. As a Level 1 BBBEE accredited training provider we offer various learnerships, short courses, and soft skills training workshops. We put people at the heart of everything we do and focus on positively changing the lives of our students. Get in touch with us today so we can help you find solutions to your BBBEE Skills Development needs.