Even as South Africa slowly emerges from the suffocating economic grip of the Covid-19 pandemic, recently released employment statistics continue to make for grim reading, with nearly eight million individuals unemployed.
South Africa truly recorded improved economic exercise in the fourth quarter of 2021, including an growth in real GDP of 1.2% compared to the earlier quarter, but unemployment still reached record levels.
Denice Dumisa
According to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), unemployment in Q4 final 12 months rose to 35.3% from 34.9% within the previous quarter. This is the best degree since the begin of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey in 2008.
Even extra alarmingly, the youth unemployment rate stood at a staggering sixty five.5%.
The newest employment information was launched at the end of March by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), and came simply days after South Africa managed to attract R1.2 trillion in funding during the fourth South Africa Investment Conference.
Analysts have described the country’s economic system as “producing jobless growth” and imagine that even with upward financial progress within the medium time period, South Africa will still have an total unemployment determine of around 30%.
Youth unemployment is a global issue, much more acutely pronounced in South Africa, the place the most recent figures are sounding important alarm bells.
In late 2021, Stats SA reported that two out of each three young folks beneath the age of 35 in South Africa are unemployed. For the age cohort underneath 25, this rises to 3 out of every four, or a jarring 75%.
But in and amongst the dire unemployment statistics there are rays of light on tips on how to start to effectively address this socio-economic crisis.
Education is key
According to the QLFS report, of the 7,9 million unemployed individuals within the fourth quarter of 2021, as many as 51,6% had education ranges below matric.
This number of unemployed drops the higher the schooling level. Those with a Matric move constitute 38.6% of unemployed and this figure drops considerably for these with different tertiary qualifications (6.9%) and graduates who represent only 2.4% of South Africa’s formal unemployed.
Astron Energy’s Organisational Capability, Learning and Development Manager Lindiwe Ncongwane mentioned: “It is an usually repeated mantra that training is the key to success, however the labour drive survey definitely bears this out.
เกจวัดแรงดันแก๊สอาร์กอน allied to alternative is the golden key to breaking this cycle of unemployment and to create a future for younger individuals in the country.”
Astron Energy, which operates South Africa’s second largest community of retail sites including the Caltex model, runs numerous Youth Development Programmes masking both academic help and workplace and experiential studying opportunities.
Astron Energy’s Youth Development Programmes embody:
Learnerships
Bursaries
Apprenticeships
In-Service-Training
Graduate Internship Programme
Opportunities
According to Ncongwane, South African Corporates have a key function to play in offering opportunities for graduates and people with other qualifications to help scale back the number of unemployed, and likewise to assist build a generation of employable younger individuals.
“Investments in coaching and expertise development, allied to schooling qualifications, will assist construct a workforce that is multi-skilled and capable of adapt to a large number of tasks and industries,” she stated.
The 2020 Future of Work report by the World Economic Forum (WEF) found that 50% of all staff will want reskilling by 2025 as adoption of technology increases.
The report additionally listed critical considering and problem-solving as main skills employers believe might be wanted over the subsequent 5 years, while newer trends centre on self-management skills similar to lively learning, resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility.
According to Ncongwane, a key a part of Astron Energy’s focus is to equip young folks for the world of work, not only at Astron Energy and the petrochemical industry, but the throughout a spread of disciplines to enable them to be globally aggressive.
The company also runs a quantity of school-level initiatives within the STEM area, however in line with the 4th Industrial Revolution’s give attention to the 3Cs of Communication, Critical considering and Collaboration, has broadened this to STEAM – Science, Technology, Arts and Maths – in a bid to develop problem-solving and process-based learning.
The method forward
“As a country, we’ve to proceed investing within the training of our younger individuals, particularly in the critical abilities area, and then create alternatives for them to apply these abilities and develop in workplace environments,” Ncongwane said.
“As corporates we want to design a spread of programmes and initiatives to meet not solely the needs of the enterprise, but in addition the future of work – and critically the lengthy run employment potentialities for our younger folks.
“If we do this proper, we are in a position to start altering the outlook on the employment entrance and make certain that economic development has a tangible impact on the futures and livelihoods of the generations to come back.”
In the Youth Development house, Astron Energy runs the next programmes:
Learnerships
8 X Learnerships in chemical operations on the Astron Energy refinery in Milnerton, Cape Town
20 X Learnerships in Sales and New Venture Creation at Johannesburg offices
The Learnerships run from 1 Oct 2021 – 30 Sep 2022
Bursaries
Astron Energy runs a full Bursary programme which covers each underneath graduate and post graduate research, from 1st 12 months to Masters Level students.
The bursaries include tuition charges, accommodation, books, meals, cash allowances and vacation work in the type of internship/in-service-training throughout the company’s operations.
The programme started in 2020 and so far over 440 college students have been funded.
There are presently 196 scholar bursars and 15 employee bursars as part of this programme. A total of 26 worker youngsters are a part of the bursary programme for 2022.
The bursary covers a range of examine fields this yr including:
BSc: Chemical Engineering/ BSc: Industrial Engineering/ BSC: Property Studies/ Masters: Industrial Psychology/ Honours: Financial Accounting/ Bcom: Economics/ BSc: Electrical Engineering/ Bcom/BA: Human Resources Management/ Bcom: Information Technology/ Bcom: Internal Auditing/ Bcom: Logistics/ Occupational Health and Safety/ Bcom: Supply Chain/ BSc: Analytical Chemistry.
Astron Energy additionally presents profitable bursars the chance to be a part of the Astron Energy Graduate Training programme.
Apprenticeships
Astron Energy provides 24-month Apprenticeships in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering and Instrumentation at the refinery in Cape Town. At present, the company has six apprenticeships in its manufacturing division.
Graduate Programme
The Graduate Internship Programme is run in accordance with the various disciplines required by the business and runs for a period of between 18-24 months. The current intake of Graduate interns is ready to finish on 31 December 2022.
Infographic
Astron Energy currently has seventy seven members in its Learnership, Apprenticeship and Graduate Internship programmes:
LogisticsGraduate Internship13
CFOGraduate Internship11
RetailGraduate Internship5
HRGraduate Internship3
HRLearnership20
C & IGraduate Internship2
CEOGraduate Internship2
ManufacturingGraduate Internship1
STOGraduate Internship3
Strategy Graduate Internship2
SHEQGraduate Internship1
ManufacturingApprentice6
ManufacturingChemical Operations Learnership8
Total77
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