LEARNERSHIPS
IN THE BANKING SECTOR
July 2002
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CONTENTS
A Strategic Approach to Learnerships in the Banking Sector
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1. Definition of Learnerships
2. Legislation
3. BANKSETA Sector Skills Plan 2000
3.1 Sector profile
3.2 Education and training in the sector
3.3 Key priority areas and objectives
4. Guiding Principles
4.1 The management of learnerships
4.2 Project teams
4.3 Relevance to Sector Skills Plan
4.4 Need for learnerships
4.5 Quality management
4.6 Use of existing qualifications
4.7 Learnership processes
4.8 Funding
4.9 Integration with ETQA activities
4.10 Communication and marketing strategies
4.11 Role players and the negotiation between work and learning time
4.12 Evaluation of learnerships
5. Conclusion
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Banking Sector Learnership Policy
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1. Purpose of the Learnership Policy
The skills development strategy: the social context
The legislative backdrop
Considerations in implementing learnerships in the banking sector
2. Public Domain of Learnerships
3. Role of the SETA
4. Learnership Implementation
5. Accountability for Policy Administration
6. Censure for Non-compliance with Policy and Quality Management
Considerations
7. Dispute Resolution Procedure
8. Modification of Learnership Policy
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Learnership Funding
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1. Introduction
2. Principles for the Funding of Learnerships by the BANKSETA
3. Funding of Learnerships
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Quality Management Requirements for Learnership Projects in the
Banking Sector
Introduction
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Part One: Application for Registration
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1. The Registration of Learnerships
1.1 Learnership registration application form
1.2 Motivation for proposed learnership
1.2.1 Labour market needs
1.2.2 Specific arrangements
1.2.3 Co-operation and partnerships
1.2.4 Efficiency and sustainability
1.2.5 Project team
1.2.6 Demonstration of the requirements for providing the learnership
1.2.7 Completion of outstanding development work
1.2.8 Financial assistance from the BANKSETA ETQA
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Part Two: Quality Management Plan
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2. The Accreditation of Providers
2.1 – 2.23
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23-30
Part Three: Learnership Agreements and Contracts
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3.1 Learners younger than eighteen years of age
3.2 Place of registration of the learnership agreement
3.3 Variations of the learnership agreement
3.4 Disputes and complaints
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Learnership Projects: A Manual for the Banking Sector
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Executive Summary
1. Learnerships: This manual
2. The Development and Implementation of a Learnership Project:
An Overview
2.1 Process overview
3. Developing a Proposal for a Learnership
3.1 Learnership management structures
3.1.1 The nature of the contract between provider and employer
3.1.2 Advising the BANKSETA of administrative arrangements
3.1.3 Evaluation of proposed management structures
3.2 Needs analysis
3.3 Inviting sector participation
3.4 The registration form
3.5 The motivation
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4. Facilitating the Registration of a Learnership Project:
The BANKSETA Role
5. The Quality Management Plan
6. Registering Learnership Agreements
7. Implementation and Quality Assurance of a Learnership Project
7.1 Quality assurance processes
7.1.1 Minutes and reports
7.1.2 SETA attendance of project meetings
7.1.3 Learnerships working group
7.1.4 Learnership sub-committee reviews
8. Certificate of Service
9. Learner Achievements
10. Employment Decisions
11. Conclusion
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Appendices
Appendix 1: Work process flow diagrams
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Appendix 2: Terms of Reference
Learnership project working group
Learnership project team
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Appendix 3: Checklist for Evaluation of the Quality Management Plan
QMP evaluation checklist
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Appendix 4: Learnership Registration Forms
Learnership registration form for unit standard-based qualification
Learnership registration form for whole qualification
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Appendix 5: Pro forma Learnership Agreement
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Appendix 6: Regulations relevant to learnerships
The Skills Development Act No 97 of 1998 (chapters 1, 3, 4 and 5)
Learnership Regulations, 2001
Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997:
Sectoral Determination 5: Learnerships
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A STRATEGIC APPROACH TO LEARNERSHIPS IN THE BANKING SECTOR
The intention of the banking sector is to implement learnerships which will succeed. The
purpose of this document is to provide a framework that reflects possible and current changes
so that the sector can realise the full benefits of implementing learnerships. This learnership
strategy is for use as the basis for implementation which will meet the challenge of both a
changed environment and compliance on the one hand and of adding value on the other.
The strategic framework for learnerships is aligned with the mission statement of the
BANKSETA, namely,
To promote and give effect to legislation by establishing an education, training and
development framework to enable stakeholders to advance the national and global position of
the banking sector.
The overview of the legislation related to learnerships provides the legal background, while the
summary of the BANKSETA Sector Skills Plan 2000 outlines the context within which
learnerships will operate in the banking sector.
1
Definition of learnerships
What makes something a learnership is the fact that the learning is experienced in accordance
with a tripartite contract, binding the learner, the provider and the employer in legal terms, and
making it necessary for the learner to be employed by the employer for the duration of the
contract. There is no obligation on the employer to employ the learner on termination of the
contract.
Learnerships must consist of workplace components as well as academic components.
Learnerships must culminate in qualifications registered on the National Qualifications
Framework. A learnership is not the qualification itself: every qualification can be obtained by
means other than a learnership. Learnerships involve line managers in mentorship duties, and
learnerships require job rotation as part of the learning experience.
Learnerships are registered in respect of and for use in sectors. That means that a registered
learnership must be relevant to and accessible by all the organisations in the sector.
2
Legislation
The broad purposes of the Skills Development Act, No 97 of 1998, are to develop the skills of
the South African workforce, increase the levels of investment in education and training by
both employers and employees, improve employment prospects of persons previously
disadvantaged, ensure the quality of education and training in and for the workplace, assist
work seekers to find work and provide and regulate employment services. It is made clear that
all provisions of the Act must be interpreted to give effect to its purposes and those of the
SAQA Act.
Chapter 3 of the Act includes the following as the functions of a SETA:
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implement the sector skills plan by establishing learnerships
promote learnerships by
 identifying workplaces for practical work experience
 supporting the development of learning materials
 improving the facilitation of learning
 assisting in the conclusion of learnership agreements
 register learnership agreements
Chapter 4 focuses on learnerships and outlines the conditions for establishing learnerships as
well as the terms and conditions for learnership agreements.
The Learnership Regulations, 2001, stipulate the terms and conditions for registering
learnerships and learnership agreements, terms pertaining to learnership agreements, the
making of decisions by the SETA, the keeping of records and the referring of disputes. The
Learnership Regulations also contain a template for the Learnership registration form and for
the Learnership Agreement.
More recent regulations pertinent to the funding of learnerships are the Skills Development
Regulations No R 571 of June 2001 and Sectoral Determination No 5 : Learnership No 519 of
June 2001. The Skills
Development Regulations No R 571 of June 2001 refer to the mandatory and discretionary
grant to be paid to employers or providers by SETAs while the Guidelines state that a grant
can be requested to offset the costs of implementing a learnership, or may be paid to
subsidise the learner’s allowance if the learner was unemployed immediately before starting
the learnership.
The Sectoral Determination No 5 : Learnerships No 519 of June 2001 applies to learners and
employers who have concluded a learnership agreement and deals with learner allowances,
the calculation of remuneration and allowances and the other contingencies related to
employment.
The most recent legislation affecting learnerships is an incentive to employers ‘to encourage
job creation by reducing the cost of hiring new workers and of offering learnerships’. A
proposed change to the Tax Act, viz. Section 12 H in Act 58 of 1962, indicates a deduction in
respect of learnership agreements which will allow an employer a deduction equal to R50 000
for all learnership agreements entered into on or after 1 October 2001.
Of relevance to a strategic framework for learnerships for the sector is the legal onus on the
SETA – being the Council and the Council being representative of organised employers and
organised labour belonging to the sector – to promote learnerships. This document attempts
to lay down the principles which will allow the sector to implement the learnership legislation in
the manner most suitable to the sector.
3 BANKSETA Sector Skills Plan 2000
3.1 Sector profile
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The banking sector includes banking and financial services organisations which range from
the large corporate enterprises to the SMME micro finance and micro lending organisations.
The five largest banking groups account for 82% of the approximately 160 000 employees in
the sector.
The Sector Skills Plan shows clearly that there has been a decrease in employment nationally
of between 3,5% and 5% over the past four years and predicts that the sector will continue to
decline by a further 5% over the next three years, albeit not evenly across the sector.
As a result of market growth, technological change, increased competition and structural
change, there is a shortage of skills in the following areas: professional, associated
professional and senior management and managerial occupational groups.
3.2 Education and training in the sector
In his foreword to the BANKSETA Sector Skills Plan 2000, the Chairman of the BANKSETA
Council, Mike Lewis, points out that banking has always been a knowledge-intensive business
requiring a significant investment in skills development and that the major banks have made
substantial investments in training infrastructure and delivery.
While the statutory levy is 1% of the schedule four payroll, in general the banking sector
spends an average of 3% on education and training clearly showing recognition of the
importance of its human resources. Most banks see education and training as a key part of
their employment equity initiatives, their performance enhancement and performance recovery
initiatives, and their strategic human resources provision.
The SWOT analysis of the sector in the Sector Skills Plan identifies the access to world class
education and training systems as one of the major strengths of the sector.
3.3 Key priority areas and objectives
Using the workplace skills plans from organisations, the Sector Skills Plan identifies the
following five key priority areas:
 information technology-related skills development
 management and leadership skills development
 customer interface-related skills development
 specialist financial skill development
 back-office processes and support skills development
While the BANKSETA emphasises its non-interventionist role, it intends to encourage and
support skills development in the above areas by assisting stakeholders and providing
incentives to support underlying skills development initiatives.
The development of a system for learnerships is one of the ten short-term objectives for the
BANKSETA in response to encouraging employers within the sector to contribute to the
achievement of the National Skills Strategy. The BANKSETA will support the introduction of
learnerships in the sector. The Sector Skills Plan points out that the concept of learnerships is
new to the sector and that a significant lead time will probably be necessary for member
institutions to frame their intended learnerships and position them correctly. The Sector Skills
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Plan states the BANKSETA’s commitment to promoting learnerships for employed and preemployed persons but also points out that, currently, the sector is not actively involved in the
process of pre-employment training.
4 Guiding principles
The SETA has a statutory obligation to promote learnerships in the banking sector but
because of the nature of the sector, the declining employment statistics in the sector, the
commitment to high levels of skills development and the relatively skilled and highly skilled
profile of employees in the sector, the relevance of learnerships has thus far been seen as
limited. The BANKSETA recognises that learnerships are only a small part of the investment
in skills development in the sector. However, the proposed amendment to the Tax Act makes
learnerships a far more viable proposition for organisations in the sector.
The challenge to implement learnerships in such a way as to add value remains a key
consideration.
While learnerships should not be seen as the only response to the priority areas identified for
skills development, it is feasible that these could become areas of focus for learnerships. In
terms of the requirements of the Skills Development Act that a SETA must implement its
sector skills plan by establishing learnerships, learnerships can become one strategy for
addressing the skills gaps in the sector.
The principles described below should be seen as a response to meet the challenge of the
successful but responsible implementation of learnerships and will be the guiding principles for
the banking sector.
4.1 The management of learnerships and pilot projects
In line with the BANKSETA Council’s view that learnerships would be established on the basis
of pilot exercises for the remainder of 2001 and in 2002, those learnerships currently
registered will remain pilot projects. The creation of a body of inter-organisational knowledge
about learnerships remains a priority and there will be an impact assessment of each pilot
project as planned.
It was anticipated that the banking sector and the BANKSETA would be ready for full
implementation by 2003. It is important that this phase not be delayed until then so that
banking institutions can realise the full tax benefits now associated with the implementation of
learnerships. While no claim is made to have all answers to all contingencies, the BANKSETA
is confident that it has the necessary systems for ensuring the establishment and
implementation of viable learnerships.
The need for the close management and evaluation of all learnerships remains an important
consideration. Close management of all learnership projects will include monitoring the
progress of each learnership and supporting the project team where necessary to make it
possible for the BANKSETA to evolve its policies, quality management systems, prescriptions,
registration requirements and so forth on an ongoing basis.
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Mechanisms will be put in place for the findings of all learnership projects to be reported to the
sector at large.
4.2 Project teams
The leader of the project team will be a representative of either the provider or employer body
while the members will include those parties directly involved as well as interested participants
from the sector. The project team will include a representative from the BANKSETA.
The project team will be responsible for advertising the intended learnership in the sector,
using the BANKSETA website as the means of communication, and then acting as the coordinating body to plan and implement the learnership.
4.3 Relevance to Sector Skills Plan
One of the criteria for evaluating a learnership will be its immediate relevance to the skills
gaps identified in the Sector Skills Plan. The onus will be on the proponent(s) of the
learnership to demonstrate relevance.
4.4 Need for learnerships
There must be a genuine need for learnerships. A proper needs analysis will have to be done
for each learnership. Guidelines for the various aspects to be included in the needs analysis
will be provided by the BANKSETA to ensure consistency.
Before a learnership can be registered, there must be the assurance both that there is a need
for the target qualification, and that there is a need to engage with that target qualification
through a learnership. Moreover, the learnership should be of broad applicability in the sector.
The need must not exist merely in one organisation, and the need should not exist only for a
year or two.
4.5 Quality management
As part of the process of establishing quality learnerships, a stringent and comprehensive
quality management system for learnerships will be put into place and will hopefully have the
effect of getting learnerships off to a good start. The BANKSETA itself has a QMS and will
expect the project team to submit a QMS for learnerships. This latter requirement will be over
and above the QMS for the provider organisation as required for accreditation purposes.
In cases where the learners and the employer are constituent members of the BANKSETA but
the provider is from another sector, it will be incumbent on the employer organisation to
ensure that the provider adheres to the BANKSETA learnership requirements.
A standard format for learnership proposals as well as guidelines for the development of
learnerships have been designed and trialed and is available to the sector.
4.6 Use of existing qualifications
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The BANKSETA recommends that the existing qualifications be used for learnership projects.
It will not involve itself in the design of qualifications for learnerships. The correct route is
through the standards-generating bodies and national standards bodies.
Each target qualification for a proposed learnership must be registered at the time registering
the learnership towards it is considered. This is a responsible approach as it will save a great
deal of time: the scoping, generation and registration of unit standards can and will take at
least five to six months. This does not mean that the SETA will discourage organisations from
moving forward with the registration of new unit standards and/or qualifications, merely that
the SETA cannot involve itself in this approach.
4.7 Learnership processes
There is a standardised process for registering, developing and implementing learnerships
and all learnerships proposed will have to conform to the elements of the processes.
4.8 Funding
Funding of learnership projects will be subject to conformance with the criteria for funding.
Learnerships from other sectors will not be funded by the BANKSETA.
4.9 Integration with ETQA activities
Although learnerships exist in terms of the Skills Development Act, there is an unavoidable
link with the SAQA Act which calls for the quality assurance of the accredited provider by the
BANKSETA ETQA. The BANKSETA ETQA will be accountable for monitoring and auditing the
full spectrum of education and training pertaining to learnerships.
Provision has been made for cross-sectoral co-operation through a memorandum of
understanding with the relevant ETQA(s).
All learnerships agreements for employees of constituent organisations must be registered
with the BANKSETA.
4.9 Communication and marketing strategies
The SETA will meet its statutory obligation to promote learnerships in the sector through
workshops and conferences, the BANKSETA web site (www.bankseta.org.za), the
BANKSETA and internal organisation newsletters, and any other medium which it may
consider appropriate.
Once research has been carried out into the needs of the SMME sector, relevant methods of
marketing and communication will be identified and used. It is anticipated that the learnership
needs of this part of the sector may differ radically from those of the banking organisations.
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4.11
Role players and the negotiation between work and learning time
The provider(s)/ lead provider and employer(s)/ lead employer for each learnership shall
clarify their respective roles prior to submitting the application to register a learnership
according to the duties and responsibilities spelt out in the Learnership Regulations.
There are clear legal requirements for the structuring of the workplace and training
components of a learnership as well of the obligations of the employer and provider for the
duration of the learnership contract. The planning phase of the learnership must therefore
include the agreements reached between employer and provider.
4.12
Evaluation of learnerships
The BANKSETA and stakeholders involved in learnerships in the sector will need to plan and
carry out an evaluation and impact assessment of learnerships to measure the extent to which
the learnerships have met the goals of both the sector and the National Skills Strategy. The
evaluation model(s) as well as the success criteria to be used will need to be defined in the
planning phase.
5
Conclusion
As stated from the outset, the intention of this document has been to provide a strategic
framework for the implementation of learnerships within the contexts of the banking sector and
of current legislation.
Only through a common understanding of the challenges posed by learnerships and of ways
of dealing with them for the benefit of the sector as a whole, will the sector be able to move
forward.
Once stakeholders in the sector have endorsed these principles, they will be used as the basis
for continuing discussion and for the development of policies and procedures.
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BANKING SECTOR LEARNERSHIP POLICY
Purpose of the Learnership Policy
The skills development strategy: the social context
Skewed provision of education and training was historically one of the means by which
disadvantage was entrenched in the South African social landscape.
Further, it is recognised by Government that skills contribute directly to the performance and
competitiveness of the South African economy.
Consequently, as one of the key national focus areas aimed at the redress of past ills and the
support of the economy, skills development has been targeted.
The legislative backdrop
In order to drive skills development nationally, various pieces of legislation have been
promulgated. These include The Skills Development Act, the Skills Development Levies Act,
and the South African Qualifications Authority Act.
The skills development legislation makes provision for the promotion and development of
various institutions and methods of educational and vocational upliftment. The Banking Sector
Education and Training Authority is one such institution.
One of the methods of skills development contemplated in the legislation is the ‘learnership’.
What makes something a learnership is the fact that the learning is experienced in accordance
with a contractual relationship between three parties, the learner, the provider and the
employer, which makes it necessary for the learner to be employed by the employer for the
duration of the contract. Learnerships must consist of workplace components as well as
academic components. Learnerships must culminate in qualifications registered on the
National Qualifications Framework.
The legislation stipulates that a learnership must culminate in a specific qualification – a
certificate as contemplated in the SAQA Act.
In order to qualify for grant disbursement, a learnership must be registered by the SETA with
the Department of Labour. Regulations governing the registration of learnerships are
contained in Government Gazette no. 7043.
Once a learnership has been designed, developed, and registered, the learnership agreement
between the three parties must be registered with BANKSETA.
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Considerations in implementing learnerships in the banking sector
The banking sector, through the office of the BANKSETA, is fully committed to giving effect to
the letter and spirit of the skills development legislation, thus supporting and driving the
national skills development strategy in the sector.
The sector recognises that the potential to create learnerships willy-nilly, and to fail to add
value in so doing, is present. The effectiveness of the sector can be compromised, the
available funds misapplied, and the National Skills Development Strategy undermined.
The sector therefore recognises that the implementation of learnership initiatives in the sector
must be subject to strategic planning and policy regulation in order to ensure that:
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administration is fluid and effective;
potential sector benefits are realised;
equity aims are achieved; and
resources, financial and human, are optimally deployed for maximum returns.
Public Domain of Learnerships
It is envisaged that learnerships will address skills requirements that are general to the sector,
and which do not in and of themselves afford any individual organisation competitive
advantage. The very fact that they will culminate in registered national qualifications indicates
their generic nature. However, it is the qualification that is public domain and not the learning
programmes. Unless otherwise arranged, each organisation will be responsible for the
development of its own learning programmes and materials.
The Role of the SETA
The BANKSETA’s role is to ensure that spirit and letter of legislation are given effect in a way
in which promotes sector business competitiveness.
It will do so by:
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providing overall guidance on the development and implementation of learnerships,
including the development of sector strategy and policy, as well as in respect of the
design of specific learnerships;
providing administrative processes and support for their realisation;
providing quality assurance services to ensure that the sector relevance of the
learnership is uncontested;
providing quality assurance to ensure that the planning, design, and development of
learnerships meet required standards in all respects;
providing quality assurance to the implementation of learnerships in order to verify that
envisaged results are consistently achieved;
declining the registration of learnerships that do not meet agreed provisions as
stipulated in the various quality management frameworks;
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deregistering learnership agreements in which the provisions of the quality
management framework is not met on a sustained basis; and
promoting the implementation of learnerships in the sector through communication by
various channels.
Learnership Implementation
The processes and procedures pertaining to the implementation of learnerships are fully
specified in Learnership Projects: a manual for the banking sector page 34-46.
This document will be version-controlled. Users will be advised of modifications to the manual
via e-mail, upon which notification, new copies should be downloaded and previous copies
destroyed.
Accountability for Policy Administration
The oversight of the administration of this policy is the direct responsibility of the ETQA and
Learnership Manager as far as the BANKSETA is concerned.
Censure for Non-Compliance With Policy and Quality
Management Considerations
In addressing instances of non-compliance, the BANKSETA will, on the sector’s behalf,
attempt to resolve any difficulties in a conciliatory manner.
When problems cannot be resolved through reasonable consultation, the BANKSETA Council
reserves the right to censure instances of non-compliance with this policy in one or all of the
following forms:
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deregistration of learnership agreements;
revocation of provider validation and/or accreditation;
withdrawal and /or reclamation of funds disbursed in respect of learnerships; and
any other avenue open to it in law.
Dispute Resolution Procedure
Disputes between the learner and the employer may arise from time to time. As these occur in
the context of the contract of employment, they are subject to the provisos of the relevant
labour laws. In general, such disputes are subject to recognition agreements with labour and
the CCMA for resolution.
As far as disputes between the learner and the provider are concerned, these are subject to
the provisions of the relevant sections of the SAQA Act, and fall within the jurisdiction of the
ETQA.
Such disputes may in turn be referred to the Minister, should resolution at SETA level fail.
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Modification of Learnership Policy
Any modification to this policy will only be deemed to be valid provided the quality
management process for policy development has been followed, and the modification duly
authorised by the BANKSETA Council.
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LEARNERSHIP FUNDING
1. Introduction
The Skills Development Act No. 97 of 1998 places the responsibility for Learnerships
on Sector Education and Training Authorities. Chapter 3 Section 10(1) refers to SETA
functions, and item 10(1) c states that the SETA has a responsibility to promote
Learnerships by
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identifying workplaces for practical work experience;
supporting the development of learning materials;
improving the facilitation of learning; and
assisting in the conclusion of Learnership agreements.
Item 10(1) d refers to

registering Learnership agreements.
Subsequent Learnership Regulations (April 2001) place the relationship between the
SETA and learnerships in a clear light with a specific impact on the funding of
learnerships and the SETA’s responsibility to assist in that process.
(6)
(7)
Within 30 days of receiving the learnership agreement, the SETA must
decide –
(a)
whether or not to register the learnership agreement;
(b)
in respect of every learnership agreement that is registered,
whether or not to pay a grant –
(i)
towards the costs of the learnership;
(ii)
towards the allowance to be paid to a learner who was
not in the employment of the employer at the time the
learnership agreement was concluded.
A SETA must advise the employer of the amount of any grant that it will
pay in terms of sub-regulation 6(b).
More recent regulations pertinent to the funding of learnerships are the Skills
Development Regulations No R 571 of June 2001 and Sectoral Determination No
5 : Learnerships No 519 of June 2001.
The Skills Development Regulations No R 571 of June 2001 refer to the
mandatory and discretionary grant to be paid by SETAs while the Guidelines
state that
23.Any employer may seek a grant from a SETA to support the
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implementation of learnerships. Each SETA will determine the
level of the grant and the details of the grant will be registered
with the Department of Labour when each learnership is
registered.
24. There are two possible types of grants to support learnerships. The first
is a grant to offset the costs of implementing a learnership, (e.g. off the
job education and training provider fees). The second is a grant that may
be paid to subsidise the learner’s allowance if the learner was
unemployed immediately before starting the learnership. (a section 18(2)
learner). The learner allowance must be in terms of the Learnership
Determination published by the Minister of Labour on 15 June 2001.
25. It is a matter for the SETA to decide how many and which applications it
will support. Each SETA will need to make its decisions in the light of the
priorities of its sector skills plan and the amounts of money it has
available to support learnerships.
26. A SETA must inform an employer whether or not it will make a grant
before the learnership starts. The SETA will agree with the employer
when the grant will be paid, e.g. if this will be in staged payments or only
once the learnership is successfully concluded.
27. Each SETA will establish and publicise its criteria for approving the
learnership grants.
The Sectoral Determination No 5: Learnerships No 519 of June 2001 applies to
learners and employers who have concluded a learnership agreement and deals with
learner allowances, the calculation of remuneration and allowances and the other
contingencies related to employment. Of greatest interest to this document is Table A
which deals with the calculation of learner allowances.
A proposed change to the Tax Act, viz. Section 12 H in Act 58 of 1962, indicates a
deduction in respect of learnership agreements which will give an employer an
allowance equal to R50 000 for all learnership agreements entered into on or after 1
October 2001. This is an incentive to employers ‘to encourage job creation by reducing
the cost of hiring new workers and of offering learnerships’.
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2. Principles for the funding of learnerships by the BANKSETA
These principles intend to provide a framework for funding learnerships that is
consistent and fair to all stakeholders.

Principle 1
The banking sector learnership process must be needs-driven. In other words, the
BANKSETA together with the sector should determine in which areas learnerships
should be initiated or developed and should not be driven by some external body
and forced on the sector.

Principle 2
Learnerships will be funded from the pool of discretionary sector grant money
available to the BANKSETA or from National Skills Fund money.

Principle 3
The BANKSETA sees its role as one of support for learnerships but does not see
itself as being responsible for the overall financial obligations associated with
learnerships.

Principle 4
Learnerships which do not meet the criteria for registration as determined by the
relevant acts and regulations as well as by BANKSETA criteria, will not be funded
by the BANKSETA.
Only learnerships complying with the criteria for designated groups as per the
National Skills Development Strategy ( ) will be considered for funding.

Principle 5
The BANKSETA will not make funds available as grants in relation to learnerships
eligible for any grant support from any other authority, institution or governmental or
other office. In other words, should a learnership be funded with Department of
Labour funds, the BANKSETA will not get involved in the funding of that learnership.
This does not only apply to funds obtained from the national skills funds, but for any
other type of external support that is given.
Any organisation requesting funds will be required to submit a declaration to the
effect that no attempt will be made to access funds from any source other than the
BANKSETA discretionary grant fund.

Principle 6
The BANKSETA will be conservative in its funding of learnerships.

Principle 7
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Learnerships will be established by the SETA through a process which will entail
close BANKSETA involvement.

Principle 8
Learnerships already registered and implemented by an organisation will not be
eligible for funding.

Principle 9
All applications for learnership funding must be made using the existing “Application
for Discretionary funds” process. This implies that all applications for learnership
funding must be submitted to the BANKSETA by the date specified.

Principle 10
The SETA will not accept the duplication of learnerships.

Principle 11
All constituent organisations will be kept fully informed of all learnerships
undertaken in the SETA whether the organisation is directly involved or not.
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3. Funding of learnerships
Learnerships can be viewed as having three distinct areas, namely the research,
design and development of a learnership, the implementation and then the contractual
responsibilities in respect of learner allowances. The funding of learnerships will be
restricted to the design and development costs associated with learnerships.
The total figure available for funding learnerships for the 2002-2003 tax year will be
R2.4 million.
The approach taken is to pool this sum evenly, albeit according to the actual spend by
organisations, across the requests for learnership funding by constituent organisations
within the sector. No single application will receive a sum in excess of R300 000 for the
learnership project.
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QUALITY MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS FOR LEARNERSHIP PROJECTS
IN THE BANKING SECTOR
1
Introduction
The BANKSETA ETQA will manage quality as far as possible pro-actively, by building quality
into mechanisms, institutions, processes and systems, rather than by trying to "inspect quality
in". In practice, it is recognised that both the pro-active and the re-active approach to quality
management are necessary.
In consequence, the quality management system for
learnerships has a pro-active and a re-active component.
The pro-active component exists in the role of the ETQA in assessing quality-related issues in
proposed learnerships prior to the registration of these learnerships by the BANKSETA and in
the role of the ETQA in stipulating conditions for accredited provider organisations to deliver
learnerships. The quality management system also considers two reactive components:
periodic quality audits in relation to learnerships and the handling of disputes and complaints
relating to learnerships. Each of these is treated separately in this document.
PART ONE: APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION
1
The registration of learnerships
1.1
Learnership registration application form
In accordance with current legislation, regulations and guidelines, the application to register a
learnership must be on a form prescribed by the BANKSETA, (see Appendix 4) and must be
accompanied by a motivation, as set out in 1.2.1 to 1.2.8, addressing a range of elements.
1.2
Motivation for proposed learnership
1.2.1 Labour market needs
All learnerships in the banking sector must be, in accordance with current legislation,
regulations and governmental guidelines, demand-led. The proposal should demonstrate that
the learnership responds to specific social or economic challenges facing South Africa in
general and the banking sector in particular as identified by the sector skills plan or according
to the additional options indicated in the LEARNERSHIP REGISTRATION FORM. It should
also demonstrate how it would meet particular labour market challenges, e.g. employment
equity requirements.
To show that the proposed learnership meets labour market needs, it must be accompanied
by a needs analysis which must include the following:



The target audience should be indicated.
The procedures for sampling the target audience should be explained.
The data collection methods should be explained.
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
A description of how the decisions were made based on the data should be given.
The argument for registering a learnership should not be made on the basis of the qualification
to which the learnership goes but it must be shown in how the learnership relationship (i.e. in
essence the learnership contract) will help to achieve the objectives in question.
The learnership must be shown to address real economic needs, rather than traditional
categories of work which might not be sufficient to equip the learner in the requisite way.
Note that learnerships towards qualifications not yet registered with SAQA cannot be
considered for registration.
1.2.2 Specific arrangements related to the learnership
In order for a learnership to be registered, the application must include motivations for each of
the following:




the duration of the learnership;
the distribution of time between workplace experience and formal tuition entailed by the
learnership;
the intended learner population for the learnership; and
the entry requirements established in respect of the learnership.
The Skills Development Act, Act 97 of 1998, stipulates that a learnership must lead to the
achievement of a qualification, and the lowest order of qualification, being a certificate, has a
minimum of one hundred and twenty credits.
One hundred and twenty credits roughly translates to about a 12-month provision period,
which is generally considered to be a reasonable time frame for the delivery of a substantial
learnership programme. However, it is possible to have time frames that are shorter than 12
months particularly where justification is provided.
1.2.3 Co-operation and partnerships
The design and implementation of learnerships should involve co-operation and partnerships
between employers, education and training providers and employees and should reflect the
endorsement of the sector as a whole. The application must be accompanied by "[…] a
description of the nature of the partnerships that were established, [and] with whom these
partnerships were established…." The guidelines stipulate that "The learner may negotiate, in
conjunction with the employer, and with the provider on:


timing, location and mode of delivery, and
who conducts the assessment".
Regarding the implementation of the learnership, it will be presumed that the parties involved
in co-operation and partnerships at registration will remain involved, and the application
should contain an assurance as to this involvement. It is important that all pertinent employers,
learners and providers are properly represented throughout.
1.2.4 Efficiency and sustainability
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All aspects of learnerships must be cost-effective and sustainable. It is however quite feasible
that there will be cross-subsidisation. For instance, the cost-effectiveness of the workplace
component might compensate for a relative weakness in cost-effectiveness in the formal
training and education component of a learnership. The cost-effectiveness of the learnership
from the point of view of the provider and the employer must be calculated and projected, and
must form a part of the application.
1.2.5 Project team
A project team must be formed to manage the learnership project and must comprise a project
manager who will be the contact person with the BANKSETA, employer and provider
representatives as well as a representative from the BANKSETA. A copy of the letter of
sponsorship required for the application for the funding of a learnership should be included
with the motivation.
The project team can be expanded to include interested persons from other organisations in
the sector once the learnership has been publicised (see 2.1).
1.2.6 Demonstration of the requirements for providing the learnership
The application should list the accredited providers, and should demonstrate what part of the
potential learner programme they address.
The application must be accompanied by a description of the learnership qualification as
constructed and a map of the qualifications pathway. It is recommended that existing
qualifications be used. The application should include the registration number of the
qualification.
The availability of appropriate funding in respect of a proposed learnership must be specified.
This will entail the submission of projected budgets in respect of the learnership in question.
1.2.7 Completion of outstanding developmental work
Guidelines indicate that any outstanding developmental work, including the generation of
standards and the upgrading of providers' capacities, etc. must be completed.
This is
understood by the BANKSETA to mean that all such developmental work must have been
completed and all pertinent unit standards and qualifications must already have been
registered, and all supporting mechanisms alluded to in this document must be already in
place.
1.2.8 Financial assistance from the BANKSETA ETQA
The proposed learnership must adhere to the funding documents which stipulate the basis on
which the BANKSETA ETQA will grant and refuse requests for financial assistance in respect
of a proposed learnership.
PART TWO: QUALITY MANAGEMENT PLAN
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A quality management plan must be submitted to the BANKSETA for all learnerships before
any learnership agreements can be registered. This requirement is in keeping with the
BANKSETA philosophy of building quality in from the beginning rather than trying to inspect it
in at a later stage. The quality management plan must be reviewed each time a learnership is
initiated.
Where the provider associated with a particular learnership registered by the BANKSETA is
an in-house provider and has been accredited by the BANKSETA ETQA, the provider will be
principally accountable for the quality management of the learnership. In cases where the
provider has been accredited by another ETQA, the project team will be jointly responsible for
the quality management of the learnership.
2.
The accreditation of providers
All providers of learnerships will be expected to meet the requirements for accreditation (as
outlined by SAQA Regulations) as well as those of the appropriate ETQA function. These
requirements assure the provider's capabilities to plan, deliver, and manage the standards and
qualifications for the learnerships concerned.
In order to register a learnership, accredited providers will have to submit the following
documents:


proof of accreditation as a provider, which must of course still be valid and current at
the time the application is made, in the form of a declaration by the provider and
including the provider accreditation number;
a comprehensive description of the quality assurance mechanisms which will be
employed to ensure the quality of learnerships (See 2.1 to 2.22)
The ability of a provider to deliver learnerships will lapse automatically should an accredited
provider lose, forego or waive its accreditation as a provider per se.
Whereas the BANKSETA ETQA has not prescribed particular qualifications for ETD
practitioners, it does reserve the right from time to time to stipulate specific qualifications for
trainers in respect of providers which are accredited to deliver learnerships, provided that a
sufficient grace period is allowed.
2.1
Management representative
The project team responsible for the learnership process must obtain a letter of appointment
of a representative of the provider organisation's management as well as of the employer
organisation's management who will be accountable for the full learnership process. One of
the duties of these management representatives must be to report to the BANKSETA on the
quality management system in relation to learnerships in the relevant organisation(s). The
document must also make explicit the commitment to the learnership process by both
provider(s) and employer(s).
2.2
Co-operation between providers and employers to deliver learnerships
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The project team must describe how co-operation will be effected between the training
provider and the employer in order to achieve proper integration of the workplace component
and the formal training component of the learnerships. The proposed system for co-operation
should stipulate the mechanisms allowing for lead employers and/or providers where more
than one employer or provider is affected.
Where the provider is not an in-house provider, a copy of the service level agreement between
the employer and provider must be included in the application.
2.3
Project plan
The project plan submitted in support of the quality management plan should include provision
for deliverables, accountabilities, time lines and the budget.
2.4
Staffing of provider organisation
A declaration must be included to the effect that the provider has sufficient numbers of training
and development staff who are able to:



2.5
design appropriate and effective learning programmes and materials;
implement, facilitate and assess learnership programmes in accordance with the
precepts of outcomes-based education; and
provide the requisite guidance and support to learners.
Learner support services
For a provider to deliver learnerships, it must demonstrate that it is capable of offering the
essential learner support services, involving at least the following:




sufficient clerical posts to co-ordinate the various learning components, and to ensure
that schedules and facilities are properly established, communicated and implemented;
a learnership ombudsman must be available to any learner engaged in a learnership
who is experiencing problems with that learnership within a week of the problem
arising;
a learnership manager who attends to all contractual and legal aspects of learnerships,
all funding aspects of learnerships, all managerial decision-making aspects of
learnerships, and who oversees the clerical staff in co-ordinating learnerships; and
a post, however designated, in which an accountability will reside for ensuring that
learnerships within the organisation are properly managed and regulated.
Brief job descriptions in respect of each of these posts must be submitted.
2.6
Admission of learners to programmes
A detailed description of that organisation's system for admitting learners to programmes,
demonstrating that the system is appropriate for the purpose of learnerships must be included.
The criteria for the selection of learners must be included.
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The equity ratios as stipulated by the National Skills Development Strategy (85% black, 54%
female and 4% disabled) must be adhered to as far as possible.
An outline of the induction programme and/or activities for the unemployed/pre-employed
entering into learnerships should be included.
2.7
Mentorship of learners
The pertinent guidelines envisage that all learnerships will be supported by mentorship
systems. Mentorship occurs during the workplace component of a learnership, and requires
that the mentor should possess the specialised skills which the learner is trying to obtain.
Mentorship should be intensive at the commencement of a learnership, but should not peter
down to nothing by the end of a learnership; rather, the intensity of the mentorship should be
renewed as each learner embarks on a new component of learning.
The quality document should describe what supporting mentorship is envisaged in respect of
that learnership under the following headings:








2.8
scaffolding (support when skills are embryonic);
modelling (exposure to expert practice);
sequencing (progressing from simple to more complex skills);
diversity (exposure to a range of activities and not just to repetitive tasks);
challenge, uncertainty and problem-solving;
support (both technical and personal);
collaboration (with other learners, sharing, comparing and working jointly on projects);
and
independence.
Appropriate and effective learning programmes and materials
The quality document must demonstrate that the appropriate, effective learning programmes
and materials are in existence.
Learnerships are generic to the sector and become public domain once registered. However,
it is the qualification that is public domain and not the learning programmes. Unless otherwise
arranged, each organisation will be responsible for the development of its own learning
programmes and materials.
The BANKSETA will review materials submitted in support of a learnership, not so much from
the point of view of subject-matter expertise as from the point of view of methodology. The
following features will be taken into account:




all activities, be it in the workplace or in the formal classroom, focus on the work
process, contributing to the ultimate purpose and imperatives of the work;
both formal training and workplace experience enable the learner to experience the
job(s) which is/are the target of the learnership;
learning by experience, and through performing the tasks, predominates, so that the
learner develops the ability to do the work rather than a theoretical understanding of
how the work ought to be done;
the underlying principles are conveyed;
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



2.9
learners regularly have a chance to see experts in action, performing the job as it
should be done, and are afforded ample opportunities for modelling;
the material and training guides should demonstrate that an expert will be available and
will be sufficiently engaged in the learning process for learners to benefit by the
continuous and intensive attention and interest of the expert;
coaches and experts involved in learnerships should enjoy enhanced status in the
organisation; and
the learnership curriculum, particularly in respect of the workplace component, should
not only enable, but actively promote, an increase in responsibility and accountability of
the learner within the work context.
It is of importance that formal learning and
workplace learning should be systematically integrated. Materials and trainers' notes
must demonstrate this.
General education in learnerships
A recent guideline stipulates: "Formal education, as a traditional system with an established
place in society, provides a general education that is intended to prepare individuals for further
and lifelong learning. In complementing the formal education system, then, learnerships must
do likewise, if they are to play a role in the larger lifelong educational project. While
learnerships' starting point is the world of work - and, in particular, the occupations that define
them - it is vital that they include general education components that take learners beyond the
confines of the work for which they are being trained, and include components that are socially
relevant and personally enhancing."
The quality document must include a brief discussion of the general education to be provided
in the learnership, addressing specifically the following issues:




2.10
underpinning knowledge;
general education relevant to the area of learning undertaken;
communication and numeracy competencies; and
national issues.
Lifelong learning
Learnerships should equip learners to continue to learn independently. The quality document
should demonstrate how the learnership (as distinct from the related qualification) will equip
learners to continue to learn independently and how the learner is to be allowed to reflect on
his/her own learning and work.
2.11
The technical competence of the learner
The purpose of the learnership is not only to provide a sound basis of technical competence,
but also to provide such supporting competencies as are necessary to develop the capacity of
the learner. However, the technical competence to be provided by a learnership is a key
issue, and the application should explain how the learnership would develop the requisite
technical competence of the learner. What is required here is not a discussion of how the
target qualification will reflect technical competence, but a discussion of how the various
prescriptions and requirements of the learnership, as distinct from the target qualification, will
assist in developing the necessary technical competence. This will involve the specification
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and justification of a curriculum for formal training and education, and a specification and
justification of the requirements of the workplace component of the learnership.
2.12
The formal learning component
According to the recent guidelines issued by the Department of Labour, "Structured learning
should go beyond mere content or 'trade theory' and look to:




providing support and mediation between the world of experience and the body of
knowledge;
encourage learning that is both inductive as well as deductive;
developing generic abilities, e.g. the critical cross-field outcomes; and
providing counselling and support for conflicts between the learner and work."
The quality implementation plan should demonstrate clearly how the above outcomes are to
be achieved in the learnership in a practicable and cost-effective manner.
The workplace experience component of a learnership and the structured formal learning
component should be "[…] integrally connected as well as contextualised within a work
environment". In other words, it will not be sufficient for learnerships simply to amount to a
convenient combination of skills/learning programmes with complementary workplace
components.
The formal learning component should attempt to create the following conditions:






a progression from simple to increasingly complex tasks;
an initial provision of 'scaffolding' of support […]. This could include […] providing
assistance or including examples of completed difficult components to help develop a
sense of the final skill;
increasing responsibility and independence;
opportunities to see the broader, more generalised view;
counteracting the increased specialisation of enterprises by including experiences of
similar enterprises as well as a sense of the customer and the client; and
an underpinning of generic abilities, e.g. goal-setting, planning, management, review
and reflection, self-diagnosis, learning strategies, financial management.
It is very important that outcomes are clearly stated, including the standards which must be
achieved and how this is to be done. […] There should always be a schedule outlining the
proposed learning programme beforehand." The application must show how the learnership
will satisfy the above requirements.
Prior to the registration of learnership agreements, the BANKSETA will review the proposed
learnership curriculum, the detail of the proposed workplace component, and the supporting
material and trainer guides to ensure that the learnership will in fact have the effect of
advancing the learner to the qualification in a meaningful and optimal way.
The ETQA will, however, not involve itself in qualifications and/or unit standards but sees
these as the business of the relevant standards-generating bodies.
2.13
The workplace component
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The quality implementation plan must include a description of how the structured institutional
(on-the-job) learning will occur.
2.14
Variety of employment contexts
Learnerships are required by legislation to include a variety of employment contexts. Two
reasons are supplied for this: firstly, the variety of employment contexts will provide
opportunities for a learner to acquire a broader spectrum of structured work experience, and,
secondly, this allows employers who would otherwise not be able to do so owing to their
inability to offer the full spectrum of experience required for an occupation, to participate in
learnerships.
On the basis of this, the quality implementation plan should make some endeavour to define
the spectrum of structured work experience for the learnership, bearing in mind that the
objective should be defined as more than the qualification in which the learnership will
culminate.
The fact of the matter is that any qualification should be attainable by some
means other than a learnership. The value added by the learnership then should obviously
include the broad spectrum of structured work experience.
Structured work experience should be designed to accommodate considerable latitude,
without relinquishing principles related to the appropriateness and sufficiency of the workplace
experience.
2.15
Variety of employers
As learners with different levels of learning are likely to require a variety of kinds of work
experiences with various employers, partnerships and co-operation between various
employers have to be arranged and carefully co-ordinated. This emphasises the need for the
structured work experience component to be organised well in advance as it is essential that
the learning programme will provide opportunities to acquire all the specified learning
outcomes.
In respect of learnerships for those already in employment in an organisation within the
banking sector, it is not necessary for the structured workplace component to include a variety
of employers, but the quality implementation plan should demonstrate and prescribe that
sufficient rotation among jobs will be provided.
In relation to learnerships for the pre-employed and the unemployed, proposed learnerships
should as a rule specify a variety of employers (bearing in mind that different organisations
within a group would still be construed as a variety of employers). A proposed learnership for
the pre-employed and/or the unemployed will be registered only if the case is made to
demonstrate that a sufficient spectrum of work experience is provided for and prescribed.
2.16
Assessment of learners
The quality implementation plan must demonstrate that it provides for formative and
summative assessment and must detail and prescribe how the assessment is to occur.
It must also describe the integrated assessment which is required.
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A guideline issued by the Department of Labour states: "[…] the central feature which
distinguishes learnerships from other forms of education and training is the relationship
between structured learning and structured work experience. This feature also distinguishes
the assessment from other forms of assessment. 'Integrated assessment' in the case of
learnerships refers not only to assessing the learners' abilities to integrate different elements
of competence, but also to assessing the learners' abilities to integrate work experience with
other learning." This means that the assessment should take into account what has occurred
in the other component and should require the learner to demonstrate that he/she can
integrate what he/she has learnt in other components into what he/she has learnt in the
curriculum for the specific component being assessed. The quality document must
demonstrate that the proper arrangements have been made.
2.17
Assessors
The quality implementation plan must designate the assessors who will be involved in the
learnership, and at what points of the learnership categories they will be involved. The quality
implementation plan must also demonstrate that the required assessors are available in all the
organisations intending to participate in the intended learnership.
As a general principle, the provider will be responsible and accountable for the assessment of
the formal component of the learnership. The workplace component of the learnership will be
assessed by assessors appointed to conduct assessment in the workplace.
2.18
Moderation
The quality implementation plan must stipulate who will moderate what components of the
learnership.
In the banking sector, all constituent organisations must stipulate that the
workplace component in respect of any learnership will be moderated entirely and exclusively
by the BANKSETA ETQA or its designated agent. The provider organisation's ETQA (i.e. the
authority of the SETA of which the provider is a constituent organisation) or the ETQA of the
vendor or institution sub-contracting to the provider organisation should be designated to
moderate the formal learning component. Where more than one provider organisation is a
party to the contract, the application must explain precisely what moderation contingencies
will apply in respect of what components of the learnership programme, bearing in mind that
the principle that the BANKSETA ETQA will moderate in respect of workplace components
must stand.
SAQA is entitled to appoint moderation bodies to moderate assessment across fields or
across sectoral ETQAs. It is therefore possible that particular rulings or contingencies will
govern the establishment of moderators in respect of a learnership, and exceptions to
principles designated above have to be permitted.
2.19
Recognition of prior learning
The quality implementation plan must describe the provision made for the recognition of prior
learning (RPL). RPL recognises that a learner may already be competent in certain of the unit
standards making up the qualification, whether it be the structured learning or the workplace
component. In principle, therefore, the learner can be assessed against those unit standards
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without the unnecessary repetition of training and the time frame of the learnership can be
reduced proportionate to the recognised competences the learner already has.
2.20
Record-keeping in respect of learnerships
Provider organisations must describe the record-keeping system which they have in place in
respect of learnerships.
2.21
Reporting
The quality management plan must include an undertaking for reporting to the BANKSETA as
required by the Department of Labour or SAQA, as stipulated in the project plan and
according to criteria stipulated by the BANKSETA.
2.22
Quality audits
The BANKSETA is required by legislation "[...] in the performance of its ETQA functions, [to]
monitor performance quality of the training provider".
There is a close relationship between the dimensions in the audits which the BANKSETA
ETQA or its designated agent will conduct in respect of learnerships and the requirements for
a learnership to be registered and for a provider to be accredited to deliver learnerships,
because the audits will simply address the same dimensions, and confirm that the stipulated
obligations are being properly discharged. There will also be a self-audit system, according
to which provider organisations will annually report on learnerships under a prescribed set of
headings, and will be accountable for validating their reports internally.
2.23
Further criteria
The Department of Labour, the National Skills Authority, SAQA or the BANKSETA ETQA may
from time to time publish further criteria for provider organisations to deliver learnerships. The
quality implementation plan must contain a declaration to the effect that the provider
organisation will comply timeously with such further criteria.
PART THREE: Learnership agreements and contracts
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The quality implementation plan for implementing a learnership must be accompanied by the
proposed learnership contract and a standard employment contract which parties entering into
that learnership must sign. The standard contract must contain all the minimum terms
stipulated in legislation, regulation and governmental guidelines as well as any additional
terms stipulated by the BANKSETA. Organisations may expand on the terms of the contract
but the core terms must always be present and, should there be any dispute in terms, it is the
core terms as registered which will prevail. Please see Appendix 5 for a pro forma learnership
agreement.
The proposed learnership contract which must accompany an application to register a
learnership must stipulate the obligations and the rights of the learner, the training provider
and the employer.
The proposed learnership agreement must stipulate the following suspensive conditions:
 the BANKSETA may withhold registration of the learnership agreement if it deems the
agreement not to be in the best interests of all parties to the agreement or if it is not in
the prescribed format;
 the BANKSETA may de-register an existing learnership agreement as guided by the
regulatory conditions for such de-registration;
 the BANKSETA may terminate or withhold approval to terminate a learnership
agreement as recommended to it by either the provider or the employer;
 the BANKSETA may grant or refuse requests for withholding a learner from attending
training at a registered training provider as stipulated in the learnership agreement or
employment contract; and
 the BANKSETA may seek to enforce or cause to be enforced the right and obligations of
any party to the learnership agreement in accordance with the Skills Development Act,
Act 97 of 1998.
3.1
Learners younger than eighteen years of age
The current regulations require that, in the event that a learner is younger than eighteen years
of age at the time of signing a learnership, the parent or guardian of the learner must
understand and agree to the terms and conditions of the learnership agreement, and will be a
party to the learnership agreement until such time as the learner reaches eighteen years of
age. Should any learnership contemplate a target population in which any learner may be
younger than eighteen years of age, the proposed contract accompanying the application to
register the learnership must include a stipulation to this effect.
3.2
Place of registration of the learnership agreement
The quality implementation plan must include a statement that the learnership agreements in
respect of this learnership shall be registered with the BANKSETA, and must stipulate that
such registration must occur within a month of the agreement being signed. It must moreover
be stipulated that the agreement shall become binding only once it has been registered with
the BANKSETA.
3.3
Variations of the learnership agreement
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The current legislation provides for the terms and conditions of any learnership agreement to
be varied by agreement between the employer, the training provider and the learner, subject
to the variation meeting the registration requirements of the BANKSETA. The proposed
learnership contract must stipulate the conditions for such variation, the limits to such
variation, and must stipulate that agreed variations must be confirmed in writing, and that the
variations will only become binding once certified copies of the variations have been received
and registered by the BANKSETA until which time the original agreement shall be enforced.
3.4
Disputes and complaints
In terms of the Learnership Regulations 2001, parties may refer the dispute to the
Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.
The BANKSETA ETQA will as a matter of principle not involve itself in any disputes arising out
of any learnership agreement which is not registered with the BANKSETA ETQA.
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LEARNERSHIP PROJECTS:
A MANUAL FOR THE BANKING SECTOR
Executive Summary
The banking sector intends to implement learnerships in a prudent and carefully controlled
manner. The development of learnerships is governed by a sector strategy, a policy, and a
manual.
The establishment of learnerships is outlined in this manual and associated documents.
The process involves the development of a concept, the publicisation of that concept at sector
level via the BANKSETA, the submission of a registration form and motivation, the submission
of a quality management plan, the submission of learnership agreements, and the
maintenance of quality assurance processes during the implementation phase of a
learnership.
The BANKSETA is responsible for monitoring the quality of Learnerships in order to ensure
that envisaged objectives are achieved.
The process is to be carried out by a project team, in compliance with governmental
regulations which are appended to this document (see Appendix 5).
The manual, the work processes and the regulations are subject to change, on the basis of
regulatory revision and/or continuous improvement.
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1. Learnerships: This manual
This manual has been designed as a resource to the sector in order to facilitate the
establishment and implementation of learnerships.
It is a document that will be amended as our approach to learnerships becomes more
informed by experience, and through the general management process of continuous
improvement.
It is therefore of vital importance that the user check that the most recent version of the
manual is being used. (The documents are dated, and the most recent version will be
available on the website).
The manual is structured along process lines: in other words, each step in the process of
developing and implementing a learnership is covered by a section of this manual. This
process is represented in flow chart format, and all the information in this manual refers to the
flow charts.
If there are queries and concerns regarding the contents of the manual, please do not hesitate
to contact the SETA.
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2. The Development and Implementation of a Learnership Project: An Overview
The work process that leads from the original conceptualisation of a learnership to its
implementation and eventual delivery of qualifications involves several parties, each of whom
has a distinct role.
The process flow diagrams in this manual are intended to clarify the roles of each of the
parties, and the sequence of steps necessary to deliver the learnership.
The quality requirements and regulatory compliance requirements associated with each step
are described in detail in the quality management plan document, as well as the gazetted
Department of Labour forms and regulations.
2.1 Process Overview
The overall process is initiated by an employer or a training provider, who, having acquired the
relevant information, submits an application to register a learnership, which outlines it in
concept and motivates for its registration.
Sector comment on the concept, and participation in the project is invited, and managed at the
discretion of the project team executing the learnership.
Upon receipt of the application, the BANKSETA reviews it, ensuring that it meets all regulatory
requirements and quality provisions before it is forwarded to the Department of Labour for
registration.
The Department issues a certificate of registration, and the project team and the organisations
which they represent may now proceed with the development of a Quality Management Plan,
which is a detailed document explaining how the quality provisions of the BANKSETA are
going to be met. This plan is submitted to the BANKSETA, where it too is evaluated, and the
learnership is authorised once the proposed plan has met the required quality standards.
The implementation of the learnership project commences with the recruitment and selection
of learners, and the registration of learnership agreements, which must be done by the SETA
in accord with Department of Labour regulations. Having registered agreements, the
learnership begins in earnest, with the occupational and educational component of the
curriculum being put into effect. At this stage, quality assurance becomes important, and a set
of quality assurance mechanisms comes into play.
Quality assurance is maintained until the conclusion of the learnership when qualifications are
awarded in conformance with ETQA requirements, and learners enter the labour market.
A detailed description of each step in the process follows.
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3. Developing a proposal for a learnership
This section of the manual assists the user to move from the point investigating the option of
establishing a learnership through the process of submitting an application for registration to
BANKSETA, in conformance with sector and legislative requirements.
The steps in this process are intended to assist the prospective implementer of the learnership
to meet sector legislative and sector requirements with maximum economy and clarity.
The steps in this process are set out in the flow charts.
The detailed information on the specific requirements that must be met by an application to
register a learnership is to be found in the document titled “Quality Management
Requirements for Learnerships’ (page 21-33).
The process to be followed includes the following steps:
1.
2.
3.
4.
getting hold of the basic information and forming a basic concept;
inviting sector participation in the learnership;
forming a project team (see Appendix 2);
designing the learnership concept in enough detail to complete the application for
registration;
5. completing and submitting the application for registration of a learnership, which will
consist of:
a. the BANKSETA registration form which complies with Department of Labour
requirements;
b. the motivation which must accompany the application to register the learnership.
3.1 Learnership Management Structures
The delivery of a learnership project is dependant on its management. The management of a
learnership will be the joint responsibility of the employer(s) and the provider(s).
From any perspective, it is important that this relationship between providers and employers
be clarified and structured with mutual responsibilities unambiguously defined and
documented. Doing so creates a context in which the rights, commitments and obligations of
each party are clearly spelled out - thereby diminishing the risk of later misunderstandings
which could be prejudicial to the learners or to the entire learnership project.
It is therefore important that the management structures that are going to be responsible for
the delivery of the learnership are established within a structured framework well before the
implementation of the learnership.
The required management structures:



an identified employer;
an identified provider;
a contract between these parties; and
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
a project team that will be held accountable by the employer and provider for the
delivery of the learnership, and that will serve as the primary point of contact with the
SETA.
3.1.1 The nature of the contract between provider and employer.
(In the case where the provider is an entity within the employer organisation, the contract
would be a memorandum of understanding signed by senior management).
The contract should cover at least the following:






the aims of the Learnership Project;
the roles of each of the parties;
the resource commitment by each of the parties – financial and human;
an agreement on the project team structures;
identification of an internal project sponsor or co- sponsors; and
identification of a project manager.
Naturally specific situations may require addition areas of agreement to be covered in the
contract, and the parties should exercise their judgement in this regard.
3.1.2 Advising the BANKSETA of administrative arrangements
As an element of sector learnership strategy, a decision has been taken to manage
learnership projects closely.
There are various approaches to this close management that will be implemented, and one of
these is by the allocation of a member of the BANKSETA staff to attend all meetings related to
the learnership in question. It is therefore important that the person accountable for the
administration of the learnership provide the BANKSETA with a project calendar which
contains the following information:



contact details for members of the project team;
portfolio of each member of the team; and
time, date and venue for meetings over a six month period.
All members of the project team must be notified of any changes in the schedule well ahead of
time.
The project team then implements the learnership, carrying out the ongoing administration of
carrying out the learnership curriculum.
3.1.3 Evaluation of proposed management structures
BANKSETA will review the proposed management structures to be documented and supplied
with the application for registration for conformance with these guidelines.
Failure to provide assurance that stable management structures are in place will be viewed as
a risk, and the SETA may accordingly:
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


request a revision of the application;
decline to forward the application to the Department of Labour; or
decline to initiate the financial support administration process.
It should be noted that BANKSETA will delegate an official to attend the project meetings of
each learnership. This is in accord with the sector’s adopted strategy of close monitoring of
learnerships.
3.2 Needs analysis
A learnership will only be registered provided that it can be demonstrated that:


the learnership addresses a real need for skills; and
that a learnership is the appropriate skills development intervention.
The motivation that is submitted must accordingly contain a record of a needs analysis.
The needs analysis must show that the learnership will address skills requirements identified
in the workplace skills plan and in the sector skills plan.
Guidelines for the needs analysis are contained in the document “Quality Management
Requirements for Learnership Projects in the Banking Sector”.
3.3 Inviting Sector Participation
BANKSETA does not wish to regulate the development of learnerships more than is
absolutely necessary.
It does however seek to encourage the development of a professional network, and one of the
methods for doing this is the publicisation of the learnership, and the encouragement of
contact between professionals with common interests.
The sector is naturally at liberty to make use of contacts so established, or not to.
To this end, a proposed learnership is to be communicated to the sector by the SETA, with
two specific aims:
1.
2.
To generate comment and feedback from the sector on the proposed learnership for
the benefit of the parties proposing the learnership as well as for the sector as a whole.
To create a community of practice around learnerships. (A community of practice is a
network of professionals in dialogue around programme development, thereby
establishing a common frame of reference, a language that informs action).
When a learnership project is conceived, and before the application can be submitted for
registration, the following information will be will be required, in the form of a brief paragraph:


the title of the learnership;
the broad category of the need identified as per the sector skills plan;
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




the proposed qualification;
the lead employer;
the lead provider (if identified);
the time, date and venue for the first meeting; and
the contact name and details of the relevant person in the organisation proposing the
learnership.
Accordingly, upon receipt of the required information, the SETA will publicise the learnership
following a specified procedure which is detailed in the flow chart.
3.4 The Registration Form
The application to register a learnership must be completed on the form prescribed by the
BANKSETA and must be accompanied by proof of registration of the qualification for the
proposed learnership. The BANKSETA will ensure that this is available on behalf of the parties
wanting to register the learnership.
See Appendix 4 for the required registration form.
3.5 The Motivation
The motivation which must accompany the application to register a learnership is important in
the sense that it provides the background against which the application to register the
learnership will be measured.
Details for the motivation are available (as 1.2) in Part 1 of the Quality Management
Requirements.
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4. Facilitating the Registration of a Learnership: The BANKSETA Role
The legislated requirement is that learnerships will be registered by the Department of Labour.
Certain regulatory requirements have been established by the Department, and the sector has
added to these registration prerequisites in line with its adopted strategy.
When an application for a learnership is received, it will accordingly be evaluated against this
entire set of requirements. Should the application meet the criteria, it will be forwarded to the
Department of Labour for registration, upon which the Department will issue a registration
code and certificate. (As noted above, the details of these requirements are in the QM Plan.)
The steps that the BANKSETA will follow in this process are set out in the flow charts.
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5. The Quality Management Plan
The degree to which a learnership delivers its intended learning outcomes is clearly a function
of the quality of its implementation.
While the Department of Labour registers a learnership in conformance with regulatory
provisions, the BANKSETA is accountable for ensuring that there is sufficient control over the
quality of its implementation.
The sector’s strategy as far as quality management in all respects is concerned is to ensure
that quality is built into initiatives at the outset, by establishing very clear guidelines and
provisions, as well as by establishing monitoring and control mechanisms to assure quality on
an ongoing basis.
The quality requirements that apply to learnerships are detailed in Part 2 of the Learnership
Quality Management Requirements (page 23-30).
The intention of these guidelines is that by applying them, learnerships will have a sufficient
degree of quality built into them to ensure that they may be implemented without difficulty, and
that the intended objectives are achieved.
The way in which these guidelines will be effected during a learnership must be documented
and submitted to the BANKSETA, where they will be evaluated.
Once the proposed QMP has been formally approved by BANKSETA, the learnership may
move forward to implementation.
The steps associated with this stage of learnership development are presented in the flow
charts.
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6. Registering Learnership Agreements
The implementation of a learnership commences with the recruitment and selection of
candidates, in accord with equity requirements. Once candidates have been selected, a
learnership agreement must be completed, which details the respective undertakings, rights,
and obligations of the employer, the provider, and the learner. Please note that while the
minimum requirements must be met, parties to the agreement may want to include additional
clauses. Please see Appendix 5 for a pro forma learnership agreement.
Learnership agreements must be submitted to the BANKSETA. The BANKSETA requires one
hard copy which it will scan, stamp electronically and then e-mail to the employer / provider
who will be responsible for ensuring that all parties receive a copy.
As required by regulation, the BANKSETA will review learnership agreements for
conformance with the regulations, and accordingly register them.
Like all contracts, learnership agreements are subject to amendments and terminations, in
terms of their own provisions and subject to the agreement of all signatories.
Any amendments made to learnership agreements must also be submitted to BANKSETA,
where they will duly be registered.
Guidelines for the preparation and submission of learnership agreements can be found in Part
3 of the Quality Management Requirements (page 31-33).
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7. Implementation and Quality Assurance of a Learnership
7.1 Quality Assurance Processes
During the implementation phase of the learnership, several quality assurance processes
come into play.
7.1.1 Minutes and Reports
The project team manager is responsible for distributing the minutes of all project team
meetings. Regular reports must be submitted by the project team. (An outline of the
information required in these reports is contained in 2.21 of the Quality Management
Requirements).
7.1.2 SETA attendance of project meetings
As noted above, the BANKSETA will nominate an official to attend the learnership project
meetings to note developments, provide specialist input, and to assist in problem
resolution.
7.1.3 Learnerships Working Group
In order to promote sector competence in the area of learnerships, it has been decided to
establish a working group for all learnerships in the sector. This will be a quarterly forum,
where presentations are made, issues are raised, positions debated, and problems
resolved. It will be mandatory that a project team send at least one member although the
forum will be open to all wishing to attend. (Project teams are please to advise the SETA of
proposed attendance of the working groups so that arrangements can be made) (The
Terms of Reference for the working group are set out in Appendix 2).
7.1.4 Learnership Subcommittee Reviews
A BANKSETA council subcommittee has been constituted to oversee quality on behalf of
the council.
Learnership review sessions will be held quarterly.
Learnership project managers will be required to attend these sessions, where progress
reports will be delivered, and learnership quality reviewed.
The learnerships subcommittee may make recommendations to the Project Manager in
respect of the particular learnership, or to the council on the basis of its review of all the
learnerships in progress at that time.
Minutes of these meetings will be kept.
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8. Certificate of service
In terms of Sectoral Determination 5 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, the
learner is entitled to a certificate of service. (See annexure A of Sectoral Determination 5.)
9. Learner achievements
Once the learner has obtained the required number of credits for the relevant qualification,
the BANKSETA ETQA must be notified.
10. Employment decisions
One of the regulatory Department of Labour reporting requirements relates to the number of
learners on learnerships who are offered employment on completion of the learnership
programme. Employers are therefore, required to submit these statistics to the BANKSETA
as and when requested.
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11.
Conclusion
The BANKSETA is committed to continuous improvement.
This manual represents a first pass at giving structure to the design, development and
implementation of learnership projects in accord with the sector’s strategy. It is not expected
that it be either comprehensive or definitive.
At any point during the joint monitoring process, or during the life cycle of a learnership project
the learnership manual, QMP, and policy may be amended or updated, subject to appropriate
review.
BANKSETA undertakes to notify learnership project teams and the sector in general of such
amendments.
Your feedback on the usefulness of this manual and the associated documents would be most
valued, as they will be used to improve our methods and our service to the sector.
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Appendix 1: Work process flow diagrams
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Appendix 2: Terms of Reference
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Learnership Project Working Groups
Purpose
To create a forum in which learnership
 Experience can be shared
 Ideas can be generated
 Expertise can be developed
 Problems can de identified and solved
 Needs can be identified
 Project progress can be tracked
Members



Learnership project team delegates
Seta staff
Interested parties
Decision-making status

None
Frequency of meetings

To be determined
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Learnership Project Team
Purpose
To establish and manage learnership projects
 Establish project charter – lead employer project sponsor identified
 Secure funding for learnership initiative
 Design learnership concept
 Execute learnership work processes in conformance with BANKSETA provisions
 Oversee administration of learnership
 Interface with BANKSETA as required and as per provisions
 Discretionary management of sector relationship
Members and Roles



Project Manager – Officially appointed person (either by provider or by lead employer)
who will oversee the project from inception to qualifications being awarded. This person
acts as the responsible party and primary point of contact as far as the BANKSETA is
concerned. The project manager will be responsible to ensure that a member of the
team attends working group sessions, as defined in the manual, as well as
subcommittee reviews, where presentations on learnership status will be required.
Project team members – drawn from both employers and providers
A BANKSETA delegate.
Decision making status



The project team is expected to make all design, development and implementation
decisions within the bounds of Department of Labour regulations and BANKSETA
guidelines and Quality Management provisions as documented in the manual and
associated documents.
It is expected that recommendations from BANKSETA structures such as the
subcommittee on learnerships, the ETQA, or the Learnerships Manager will be
implemented on a consultative basis.
Regulations issued by the Department of Labour may be changed from time to time,
and the project team will be held responsible for compliance by the department.
Frequency of meetings

As deemed necessary, in order to support the effective achievement of project
objectives.
Learnership project team obligations

To send at least one delegate to each learnership working group meeting
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Appendix 3: Checklist for evaluation of the Quality Management Plan
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QMP Evaluation Checklist
Criteria
Yes / No
1 The accreditation of providers
Have you included a declaration to the effect that the provider has been accredited,
with the following details?
 name of accrediting ETQA
 period of accreditation
 accreditation number
 provider contact person and contact details
1.2 Have you included a declaration to the effect that the applicant acknowledges
that the BANKSETA ETQA reserves the right to stipulate specific qualifications
for trainers in respect of providers, given a sufficient grace period?
2 Management representative
2.1 Have you included a letter from the provider and the employer for a
representative who will be accountable for the full learnership process and will
report to the BANKSETA?
2.2 Does the letter state the commitment of both the provider and the employer to
the learnership process?
3 Co-operation between providers and employers to deliver learnerships
3.1 Have you described the proposed co-operation between the provider and the
employer to ensure the integration of the workplace and formal training
components?
3.2 If applicable, does the proposed system for co-operation allow for lead
employers and/or lead providers?
3.3 Have you included a copy of the service level agreement between the employer
and the provider if the provider is not an in-house provider?
4 Project plan
Does the project plan submitted in support of the quality management plan
include provision for deliverables, time lines and the budget?
5 Staffing of the provider organisation
Have you included a declaration to the effect that the provider has sufficient
numbers of training and development staff who are able to:
 design appropriate and effective learning programmes and materials
 implement, facilitate and assess learnership programmes in accordance
 with the precepts of outcomes-based education
 provide the requisite guidance and support to learners
6 Learner support services
6.1 Have you included an organogram that shows the capacity for learner
support services?
6.2 Have you included job descriptions in respect of the relevant persons
responsible for the delivery of these services?
7 Admission of learners to programmes
7.1 Have you included a detailed description of the organisation’s system for
admitting learners to learnerships?
7.2 Have you included the criteria for the selection of learners?
7.3 Have you included a declaration to the effect that the equity ratios as
stipulated by the NSDS have been adhered to?
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7.4 Have you included an outline for the induction programme for the
unemployed / pre-employed entering into the learnership?
8 Mentorship of learners
Have you described the intended mentorship in respect the following:
 scaffolding
 modelling
 sequencing
 diversity
 support
 collaboration
 independence
9 Appropriate and effective learning programmes and materials
9.1 Have you included a declaration to the effect that learning programmes are
outcomes-based and have been aligned to the relevant unit standards?
9.2 Have you described how provision has been made for:
 all activities, both in the workplace and formal classroom
 learning by experience
 opportunities for modelling and access to experts
 the enhanced status of coaches and experts in the organisation
 the systematic integration of both formal learning and workplace learning
 the role of the workplace component in actively promoting and
 increasing learner responsibility and accountability within the work context
10 General education in learnerships
Have you provided a brief discussion of the general education to be provided in the
learnership, addressing specifically the following issues:
 underpinning knowledge
 general education relevant to the area of learning undertaken
 communication and numeracy competencies
 national issues
11 Life long learning
Have you demonstrated how learners will encouraged to continue to learn
independently after completing the learnership and how learners will be allowed to
reflect on their own learning and work?
12 Technical competence of the learner
Have you described how the learnership, as distinct from the qualification, will
develop the requisite technical competence of the learner including the following:
 specification and justification of a curriculum for formal education and
training
 specification and justification of the requirements of the workplace
component of the learnership
12 The formal learning component
12.1 Does the quality implementation plan demonstrate how the following will be
achieved:
 providing support and mediation between the world of experience and the
body of knowledge
 encouraging learning that is both inductive an deductive
 developing generic abilities
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
providing counselling and support for conflicts between the learner and
work
 the integration and contextualisation of the formal learning component with
workplace experience component
12.2 Does the formal learning component attempt to create the following
conditions:
 A progression from simple to increasingly complex tasks
 An initial provision of scaffolding of support
 Increasing responsibility and independence
 Opportunities to see the broader, more generalized view
 Counteracting the increased specialization of enterprises
 An underpinning of generic abilities
13 The workplace component
Have you included a description of how the workplace learning will occur?
14 Variety of employment contexts
Have you described the provision made for the spectrum of appropriate, structured
work experience?
15 Variety of employers
15.1 Where relevant, have you made provision for co-operation between various
employers in cases where the employer cannot offer workplace experience
in all the specified learning outcomes?
15.2 Have you demonstrated that sufficient rotation among jobs will be provided
to the learners whether with a single employer or more than one employer?
16 Assessment of learners
Have you described the arrangements for
formative and summative assessment
integrated assessment
17 Assessors
17.1 Have you given the assurance that an adequate number of assessors will
be available in the organisations intending to participate in the intended
learnership?
17.2 Have you included an undertaking that all assessors who will be involved in
the assessment of learners are registered with an ETQA or to register them
as soon as the learnership commences?
17.3 Have you indicated who the workplace assessors will be and at what points
of the learnership they will be involved?
17.4 Have you included an undertaking to the effect that the provider will be
responsible and accountable for the assessment of the formal component
of the learnership while the workplace component will be addressed by
assessors appointed to conduct assessment in the workplace?
18 Moderation
18.1 Have you stipulated who will moderate what components of the learnership
including cases where there is more than one provider?
18.2 Have you declared your understanding that
 the workplace component in respect of the learnership will be moderated
entirely and exclusively by the BANKSETA ETQA or its designated agent
 the provider organisation’s ETQA will be designated to moderate the formal
learning component
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18.3 Have you explained what moderation contingencies will apply in respect of
the various components of the learnership where more than one provider
organisation is party to the learnership?
19 Recognition of prior learning
Have you described what provision has made for the recognition of prior learning?
20 Record keeping in respect of learnerships
Have you described the record keeping system that is in place in respect of the
learnership?
21 Reporting
Does the quality management plan include an undertaking to report to the
BANKSETA as required by the Department of Labour or SAQA and according to
criteria stipulated by the BANKSETA?
22 Quality audits
22.1 Have you included an acknowledgement that the BANKSETA or its
designated agent will conduct audits in respect of learnerships?
22.2 Have you included an undertaking to conduct self-audits according to the
dimensions specified by the BANKSETA?
23 Disputes and complaints
Have you included an acknowledgement that
 parties may refer disputes to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and
Arbitration
 the BANKSETA ETQA will not involve itself in any disputes arising out of any
Learnership agreement which is not registered with the BANKSETA ETQA
24 Further criteria
Have you included a declaration to the effect that you will comply with any further
criteria that the Department of Labour, the NSA, SAQA or the BANKSETA ETQA
may publish from time to time?
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Appendix4: Learnership Registration Forms
BANKSETA
LEARNERSHIP REGISTRATION FORM
UNIT STANDARD BASED QUALIFICATION
Please find attached





the letter of registration from SAQA indicating that the qualification
has been registered on the NQF;
the learnership agreement process to date;
the costing model for the learnership
the grant allocated to the employer by the BANKSETA per
qualification
the allowance given to 18.2 learners by the employer
Learnership
Code:
________________________
(To be completed by the Department of
Labour)
1.
SETA Information
1.1
1.2
1.3
Name of SETA
BANKSETA
Name of person responsible
for learnerships
D Hamilton
E-mail address
[email protected]
Contact details:
Telephone
011 805 9661
Fax
011 805 8348
Postal address
P O Box 11678
Vorna Valley
1686
Learnership information
Title of the learnership
………………………………………………
Name of qualification
……………………………………………..
Date of registration of the qualification on the NQF
……………………………..
Code and number of the qualification
……………………………………..
NQF field
NQF sub-field
Business, Commerce and
Studies
Financial Services: Banking
NQF level
…………………………
Number of credits
120
Name of ETQA responsible for
quality assuring the qualification:
............................................
Learnership identification
How was the need for this learnership identified?
(tick the box)
SETA sector skills plan
Skills plans from “adjacent” SETAs
Generally
(specify)
available
Management
research
SETA commissioned research
Workplace skills plans
Other (specify)
What were the key features in the plans, or findings in the research?
Please draft a summary of the plans or research.
4.
Qualification and Unit Standards
Title
Details of
Qualification
Details of unit
standards
Fundamental
Learning
Core Learning
Elective learning
Code
Percentage of
NQF Credit assessment at:
Level value Workplace
Training Provider
Credits
Total credits to
earned through:
be
Show credits as a % of
the total credits of the
qualification
Workplace assessment
%
Structured learning
%
Specify the nature and duration of work experience required for each unit standard
that is to be assessed at the workplace
Nature (Tasks/Functions)
Time (in
hours)
Grant to the employer
Specify and explain the amount the SETA grants for the
implementation of the learnership, per NQF level, having regard to
such factors as training costs, market demand, the employment
status of learners (i.e. section 18(1) or 18(2) learners) and equity
targets. Specify if any other factors have been taken into account in
determining the level of subsidy.
Grant towards learner allowances
Specify the amount the SETA allocates to subsidise the learner
allowances for learners who were not employed by the employer
notional
when the agreement was concluded, as provided for in section 18(2)
of the Act.
Note that for all pilot learnership projects, the learner allowance is
paid by the employer.
Credits earned
0 - 120
121 - 240
241 - 360
361 – 480
Learner Allowance
0
0
0
0
BANKSETA
LEARNERSHIP REGISTRATION FORM
WHOLE QUALIFICATION
Please find attached





the letter of registration from SAQA indicating that the qualification
has been registered on the NQF;
the learnership agreement process to date;
the costing model for the learnership
the grant allocated to the employer by the BANKSETA per
qualification
the allowance given to 18.2 learners
Learnership
Code:
________________________
(To be completed by the Department of
Labour)
1.
SETA Information
1.1
1.2
1.3
Name of SETA
BANKSETA
Name of person responsible
D Hamilton
E-mail address
[email protected]
Contact details:
Telephone
011 805 9661
Fax
011 805 8348
Postal address
P O Box 11678
Vorna Valley
1686
Learnership information
Title of the learnership
………………………………………………
Name of qualification
……………………………………………..
Date of registration of the qualification on the NQF
……………………………..
Code and number of the qualification
……………………………………..
NQF field
NQF sub-field
Business, Commerce and Management
Studies
Financial Services: Banking
NQF level
…………………………
Number of credits 120
Name of ETQA responsible for quality assuring the qualification:
Learnership identification
How was the need for this learnership identified?
(tick the box)
SETA sector skills plan
Skills plans from “adjacent” SETAs
Generally
(specify)
available
research
SETA commissioned research
Workplace skills plans
Other (specify)
What were the key features in the plans, or findings in the research?
Please draft a summary of the plans or research.
5.
Qualification and Unit Standards
Title
Details
Qualification
of
Code
Percentage
assessment at:
NQF Credit Workplace
Level value Training
Provider
Provider
of
Credits
Total credits to
earned through:
be
Show credits as a % of
the total credits of the
qualification
Workplace assessment
%
Structured learning
%
Specify the nature and duration of work experience required for each module that is to
be assessed at the workplace
Nature (Tasks/Functions)
Time (in
hours)
Grant to the employer
Specify and explain the amount the SETA grants for the
implementation of the learnership, per NQF level, having regard to
such factors as training costs, market demand, the employment
status of learners (i.e. section 18(1) or 18(2) learners) and equity
targets. Specify if any other factors have been taken into account in
determining the level of subsidy.
Grant towards learner allowances
notional
Specify the amount the SETA allocates to subsidise the learner
allowances for learners who were not employed by the employer
when the agreement was concluded, as provided for in section 18(2)
of the Act.
Note that for pilot learnership projects, the learner allowance is paid
by the employer.
Credits earned
0 - 120
121 - 240
241 - 360
361 – 480
Learner Allowance
0
0
0
0
76
Appendix 5: Pro forma Learnership agreement
July 2002
© BANKSETA
SETA
Logo
LEARNERSHIP AGREEMENT
DoL
Logo
PART A: TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF AGREEMENT
1.
Declaration of the parties
We understand that this Agreement is legally binding. We understand that it is an
offence in terms of the Skills Development Act 97 of 1998 (‘the Act’) to provide false
or misleading information in this Agreement. We agree to the following rights and
duties.
2.
Rights of learners, employers and registered training providers
2.1
Learner
The learner has the right to:
2.1.1 be educated and trained in terms of this Agreement;
2.1.2 have access to the required resources to receive training in terms of
the learnership;
2.1.3 have his or her performance in training assessed and have access to
the assessment results;
2.1.4 receive a certificate upon successful completion of the learning;
2.1.5 raise grievances in writing with the SETA concerning any shortcomings
in the training.
2.2
Employer
The employer has the right to require the learner to:
2.2.1
2.2.2
perform duties in terms of this Agreement; and
comply with the rules and regulations concerning the employer’s
business concern.
2.3
Training provider
2.3.1
The registered training provider has the right of access to the learner’s
books, learning material and workplace, if required.
3.
Duties of learners, employers and registered training providers
3.1
Learner
The learner must:
3.1.1
3.1.2
3.1.3
3.1.4
3.1.5
work for the employer as part of the learning process;
be available for and participate in all learning and work experience
required by the learnership;
comply with workplace policies and procedures;
complete any timesheets or any written assessment tools supplied by
the employer to record relevant workplace experience; and
attend all study periods and theoretical learning sessions with the
training provider and undertake all learning conscientiously.
3.2
Employer
3.2.1
The employer must comply with its duties in terms of the Act and all
applicable legislation including:






Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997;
Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995;
Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998;
Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 (or Mine Health
and Safety Act 27 of 1996);
Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of
1993;
Unemployment Insurance Act 30 of 1996.
3.2.2 provide the learner with appropriate training in the work environment to
achieve the relevant outcomes required by the learnership;
3.2.3 provide appropriate facilities to train the learner in accordance with the
workplace component of learning;
3.2.4 provide the learner with adequate supervision at work;
3.2.5 release the learner during normal working hours to attend off-the-job
education and training required by the learnership;
3.2.6 pay the learner the agreed learning allowance both while the learner is
working for the employer and while the learner is attending approved
off-the-job training;
3.2.7 conduct on-the-job assessment, or cause it to be conducted;
3.2.8 keep up to date records of learning and periodically discuss progress
with the learner;
3.2.9 if the learner was not in the employment of the employer at the time of
concluding this Agreement, advise the learner of –
(a) the terms and conditions of his or her employment, including the
learning allowance; and
(b) workplace policies and procedures.
3.2.10 apply the same disciplinary, grievance and dispute resolution
procedures to the learner as to other employees.
3.3
Training provider
The training provider must:
3.3.1
3.3.2
3.3.3
3.3.4
3.3.5
4.
provide education and training in terms of the learnership;
provide the learner support as required by the learnership;
record, monitor and retain details of training provided to the
learner in terms of the learnership;
conduct off-the-job assessment in terms of the learnership, or
cause it to be conducted; and
provide reports to the employer on the learner’s performance.
Termination of this Agreement
This learnership agreement terminates:
4.1
4.2
5.
on the termination date stipulated in Part B of this Agreement; or
on an earlier date if:
4.2.1
the learner successfully completes the learnership;
4.2.2
the learner is fairly dismissed by the employer for a
reason related to the learner’s conduct or capacity as an
employee;
4.2.3
the employer and learner agree to terminate the
Agreement; or
4.2.4
the SETA approves a written application to terminate the
Agreement by the learner or, if good cause is shown, by
the employer.
Disputes
If there is a dispute concerning any of the following matters, it may be referred
to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA):
5.1
5.2
5.3
the interpretation or application of any provision of this Agreement, the
learner’s contract of employment or a sectoral determination made in
terms of section 18(3) of the Act;
Chapter 4 of the Act;
the termination of this Agreement or the learner’s contract of
employment.
PART B: DETAILS OF THE LEARNERSHIP AND THE PARTIES TO
THIS AGREEMENT
Please take note of the following:
1

If the learner is not already in the employ of the employer, the learner
and employer must conclude a contract of employment.

If the learner is under 21 years then the learner's parent or guardian
must be a party to this Agreement and must complete section 3. The
parent or guardian ceases to be a party to this Agreement once the
learner turns 21.

If a group of employers are party to this Agreement, one of the
employers must perform the function of a lead employer. The lead
employer must complete section 4 and details of the other employers
must be attached on a separate sheet.

If the employer and the accredited training provider are the same entity,
the employer must complete sections 4 and 5.

If a group of accredited training providers are party to this Agreement,
one of the providers must perform the function of lead training provider.
The lead training provider must complete section 5 and details of the
other accredited training providers must be attached on a separate
sheet.
Learnership details
1.1
Name of learnership:
________________________________________________
1.2
Department of Labour registration number of
learnership:
________________________________________________
1.3
Commencement date of learnership agreement:
________________________________________________
1.4
Termination date of learnership agreement:
________________________________________________
2.
Learner details
2.1
Full name:
________________________________________________
2.2
Identity number:
________________________________________________
2.3
Date of birth
2.4
Sex:
2.5
Male
Female
African
Indian
Coloured
White
Race:
Other
(specify):
2.6
Do you have a disability, as contemplated by the
Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998?1
Yes (specify):
1
No
2.7
Home address:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
2.8
Postal address (if different from above):
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
The Employment Equity Act defines a disability as a long-term or recurring physical or mental
impairment which substantially limits prospects of entry into, or advancement in, employment.
2.9
E-mail address:
________________________________________________
2.10
What language/s do you speak at home?
_________________________________________________
2.11
Yes
2.12
Are you a South African citizen?
No (specify and attach documents indicating your
status, for example: permanent residence, study
permit, etc):
_______________________________________________
Highest level qualification:
(for example: Standard 7, Grade 10, ABET Level 3)
_________________________________________________
2.13
What is the title of your highest qualification?
_________________________________________________
2.14
Have you previously undertaken a learnership?
Yes (specify title and
code):
2.15
Yes
2.16
No
Were you employed by your employer before concluding
this Agreement?
No
If you were unemployed before
Agreement, state for how long:
concluding
this
________________________________________________
2.17
If you are employed, when did you start work with your
employer?
________________________________________________
3.
Parent or Guardian details
(To be completed if learner is a minor – i.e. an unmarried person
under 21 years)
3.1
Full name:
________________________________________________
3.2
Identity number:
________________________________________________
3.3
Home address:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
3.4
Postal address (if different from above):
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
3.5
Telephone number (home and work):
________________________________________________
3.6
E-mail address:
________________________________________________
4.
Employer details
4.1
Legal name of employer:
________________________________________________
4.2
Trading name (if different from above):
________________________________________________
4.3
Are you acting as Lead Employer?
Yes
No
4.4
Business address:
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
4.5
Postal address (if different from 4.4):
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
4.6
Name of contact person:
________________________________________________
4.7
Telephone No:
________________________________________________
4.8
Fax No:
________________________________________________
4.9
E-mail address:
________________________________________________
4.10
Registration numbers and codes:
SIC:
SARS:
SETA:
______________
_________________
___________
5.
Training Provider details
5.1
Legal name of Training Provider:
_________________________________________________
5.2
Trading name (if different from above):
_________________________________________________
5.3
Are you acting as Lead Training Provider?
Yes
5.4
No
Business address:
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
5.5
Postal address (if different from 5.4):
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
5.6
Name of contact person:
_________________________________________________
5.7
Telephone No:
_________________________________________________
5.8
Fax No:
_________________________________________________
5.9
E-mail address:
________________________________________________
5.10
Registration numbers or codes:
SIC:
___________
6.
SARS:
SETA:
SAQA:
__________
_________
_________
Terms and conditions of employment
6.1
Are the learner’s terms of employment determined by a
document of general application (for example, sectoral
determination, bargaining council agreement, collective
agreement.)
Yes (specify):
6.2
No
Attach a copy of a document reflecting the learner’s
conditions of employment (for example:
contract of
employment, written particulars of employment.)
Learner’s signature:
Parent or Guardian’s signature
(Only if the learner is a minor)
________________________________
______________________________
Date:
______________________________
Date:
______________________________
Witness signature:
Witness signature:
_____________________________
______________________________
Date:
______________________________
Date:
______________________________
Employer
signature
or
Lead
Employer’s Training Provider or Lead Training
Provider's signature
______________________________
_____________________________
Date:
______________________________
Date:
Witness signature:
Witness signature:
_________________________________
_________________________________
Date:
______________________________
Date:
______________________________
_________________________________
88
Appendix 6: Regulations relevant to learnerships
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT ACT
NO. 97 OF 1998
[ASSENTED TO 20 OCTOBER, 1998]
[DATE OF COMMENCEMENT TO BE PROCLAIMED]
(Unless otherwise indicated)
(English text signed by the President)
ACT
To provide an institutional framework to devise and implement national, sector
and workplace strategies to develop and improve the skills of the South African
workforce; to integrate those strategies within the National Qualifications
Framework contemplated in the South African Qualifications Authority Act, 1995;
to provide for learnerships that lead to recognised occupational qualifications; to
provide for the financing of skills development by means of a levy-grant scheme
and a National Skills Fund; to provide for and regulate employment services; and
to provide for matters connected therewith.
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
CHAPTER
1
DEFINITIONS, PURPOSE AND INTERPRETATION OF ACT
1. Definitions
2. Purposes of Act
3. Interpretation
CHAPTER
NATIONAL SKILLS AUTHORITY
4. Establishment of National Skills Authority
5. Functions of National Skills Authority
6. Composition of National Skills Authority and term and vacation of office
7. Constitution of National Skills Authority
2
8. Remuneration and administration of National Skills Authority
CHAPTER
3
SECTOR EDUCATION AND TRAINING AUTHORITIES
9. Establishment of SETA
10. Functions of SETA
11. Composition of SETA
12. Chambers of SETA
13. Constitution of SETA
14. Finances of SETA
15. Taking over administration of SETA
CHAPTER
4
LEARNERSHIPS
16. Learnerships
17. Learnership agreements
18. Contract of employment with learner
19. Disputes about learnerships
CHAPTER
5
SKILLS PROGRAMMES
20. Skills programmes
21. Disputes
CHAPTER
6
INSTITUTIONS IN DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR
22. Skills Development Planning Unit
23. Employment services
24. Registration of persons that provide employment services
25. Cancellation of registration of employment service
26. Appeal against Director-General's decision
CHAPTER
FINANCING SKILLS DEVELOPMENT
27. National Skills Fund
28. Use of money in Fund
7
29. Control and administration of Fund
30. Budget for training by public service employers
CHAPTER
8
GENERAL
31. 31. Jurisdiction of Labour Court
32. Monitoring, enforcement and legal proceedings
33. Offences
34. Penalties
35. Delegation
36. Regulations
37. Repeal of laws and transitional provisions
38. Act binds State
39. Short title and commencement
Schedule
1
Repeal
of
laws
Schedule 2 Transitional provisions
CHAPTER 1
DEFINITIONS, PURPOSE AND APPLICATION OF ACT
1. Definitions.--In this Act, unless the context otherwise indicates-"Basic Conditions of Employment Act" means the Basic Conditions of
Employment Act, 1997 (Act No. 75 of 1997);
"Department" means the Department of Labour;
"Director-General" means the Director-General of Labour;
"employee" means-a. any person, excluding an independent contractor, who works for another
person or for the State and who receives, or is entitled to receive, any
remuneration; or
b. any other person who in any manner assists in carrying on or conducting
the business of an employer, and "employed" and "employment" have
corresponding meanings;
"employment services" means the provision of the service of-a. advising or counselling of workers on career choices either by the
provision of information or other approaches;
b. assessment of work-seekers for--
i.
entry or re-entry into the labour market; or
ii.
education and training;
c. the reference of work-seekers-i.
to employers to apply for vacancies; or
ii.
to training providers for education and training;
d. assistance of employers by-i.
providing recruitment and placement services;
ii.
advising them on the availability of work-seekers with skills that
match their needs;
iii.
(advising them on the retrenchment of employees and the
development of social plans; or
e. any other prescribed employment service;
"government department" means any department or organisational component
referred to in Schedule 1 or 2 of the Public Service Act, 1994 (Proclamation No.
103 of 1994);
"Labour Court" means the Labour Court established by section 151 of the Labour
Relations Act, 1995 (Act No. 66 of 1995);
"Minister" means the Minister of Labour;
"National Skills Authority" means the National Skills Authority established by
section 4;
"national skills development policy" means the national skills development policy
referred to in section 5 (1) (a) (i);
"national skills development strategy" means the national skills development
strategy referred to in section 5 (1) (a) (ii);
"National Skills Fund" means the National Skills Fund established by section 27;
"NEDLAC" means the National Economic Development and Labour Council
established by section 2 of the National Economic Development and Labour
Council Act, 1994 (Act No. 35 of 1994);
"prescribed" means prescribed by regulation;
"regulation" means a regulation made and in force in terms of section 36;
"SETA" means a sector education and training authority established in terms of
section 9 (1);
"Skills Development Levies Act" means national legislation imposing levies for
skills development;
"skills development levies" means the skills development levies payable in terms
of the Skills Development Levies Act;
"South African Qualifications Authority" means the South African Qualification
Authority established by section 3 of the South African Qualifications Authority
Act;
"South African Qualifications Authority Act" means the South Africa Qualifications
Authority Act, 1995 (Act No. 58 of 1995);
"this Act" includes any regulations but does not include the footnotes; and
"worker" includes an employee, an unemployed person and a work-seeker.
(Date of commencement of s. 1: 2 February, 1999.)
2. Purposes of Act.--(1) The purposes of this Act are-(a) to develop the skills of the South African workforce-i.
to improve the quality of life of workers, their prospects of
work and labour mobility;
ii.
to improve productivity in the
competitiveness of employers;
iii.
to promote self-employment; and
iv.
to improve the delivery of social services;
workplace
and
the
(b) to increase the levels of investment in education and training in
the labour market and to improve the return on that investment;
(c) to encourage employers-i.
to use the workplace as an active learning environment;
ii.
to provide employees with the opportunities to acquire new
skills;
iii.
to provide opportunities for new entrants to the labour
market to gain work experience; and
iv.
to employ persons who find it difficult to be employed;
(d) to encourage workers to participate in learnership and other
training programmes;
(e) to improve the employment prospects of persons previously
disadvantaged by unfair discrimination and to redress those
disadvantages through training and education;
( f ) to ensure the quality of education and training in and for the
workplace;
(g) to assist-i.
work-seekers to find work;
ii.
retrenched workers to re-enter the labour market;
iii.
employers to find qualified employees; and
(h) to provide and regulate employment services.
(2) Those purposes are to be achieved by-(a) establishing an institutional and financial framework comprisingi.
the National Skills Authority;
ii.
the National Skills Fund;
iii.
a skills development levy-grant scheme as contemplated in
the Skills Development Levies Act;
iv.
SETAs;
v.
labour centres; and
vi.
the Skills Development Planning Unit;
(b) encouraging partnerships between the public and private
sectors of the economy to provide education and training in and for
the workplace; and
(c) co-operating with the South African Qualifications Authority.
(Date of commencement of s. 2: 2 February, 1999.)
3. Interpretation.--Any person applying this Act must interpret its provisions to
give effect to-(a) its purposes; and
(b) the objects of the South African Qualifications Authority Act.
(Date of commencement of s. 3: 2 February, 1999.)
CHAPTER
3
SECTOR EDUCATION AND TRAINING AUTHORITIES
9. Establishment of SETA.--(1) The Minister may, in the prescribed manner,
establish a sector education and training authority with a constitution for any
national economic sector.
(2) The Minister must determine a discrete sector for the purposes of subsection
(1) by reference to categories of employers and for the purposes of that
determination take into account-a. the education and training needs of employers and employees that-i.
use similar materials, processes and technologies;
ii.
make similar products; or
iii.
render similar services;
b. the potential of the proposed sector for coherent occupational structures
and career pathing;
c. the scope of any national strategies for economic growth and
development;
d. the organisational structures of the trade unions, employer organisations
and government in closely related sectors;
e. any consensus that there may be between organised labour, organised
employers and relevant government departments as to the definition of
any sector; and
f.
the financial and organisational ability of the proposed sector to support a
SETA.
(3) On the establishment of a SETA, the Minister may provide assistance to the
SETA to enable it to perform its functions.
10. Functions of SETA.--(1) A SETA must-a. develop a sector skills plan within the framework of the national skills
development strategy;
b. implement its sector skills plan by-i.
establishing learnerships;
ii.
approving workplace skills plans;
iii.
allocating grants in the prescribed manner to employers, education
and training providers and workers; and
iv.
monitoring education and training in the sector;
c. promote learnerships by-i.
identifying workplaces for practical work experience;
ii.
supporting the development of learning materials;
iii.
improving the facilitation of learning; and
iv.
assisting in the conclusion of learnership agreements;
d. register learnership agreements;
e. within a week from its establishment, apply to the South African
Qualifications Authority for accreditation as a body contemplated in
section 5 (1) (a) (ii) (bb) and must, within 18 months from the date of that
application, be so accredited;
f.
collect and disburse the skills development levies in its sector;
g. liase with the National Skills Authority on-i.
the national skills development policy;
ii.
the national skills development strategy; and
iii.
its sector skills plan;
h. report to the Director-General on--
i.
j.
i.
its income and expenditure; and
ii.
the implementation of its sector skills plan;
liase with the employment services of the Department and any education
body established under any law regulating education in the Republic to
improve information-i.
about employment opportunities; and
ii.
between education and training providers and the labour market;
appoint staff necessary for the performance of its functions; and
k. perform any other duties imposed by this Act or consistent with the
purposes of this Act.
CHAPTER
LEARNERSHIPS
16. Learnerships.--A SETA may establish a learnership if--
4
a. the learnership consists of a structured learning component; the
learnership includes practical work experience of a specified nature and
duration;
b. the learnership would lead to a qualification registered by the South
African Qualifications Authority and related to an occupation; and
c. the intended learnership is registered with the Director-General in the
prescribed manner.
17. Learnership agreements.--(1) For the purposes of this Chapter, a
"learnership agreement" means an agreement entered into for a specified period
between-a. a learner;
b. an employer or a group of employers (in this section referred to as "the
employer"); and
c. a training provider accredited by a body contemplated in section
5 (1) (a) (ii) (bb) of the South African Qualifications Authority Act or group
of such training providers.
(2) The terms of a learnership agreement must oblige-a. the employer to-i.
employ the learner for the period specified in the agreement;
ii.
provide the learner with the specified practical work experience;
and
iii.
release the learner to attend the education and training specified in
the agreement;
b. the learner to-i.
work for the employer; and
ii.
attend the specified education and training; and
c. the training provider to provide-i.
the education and training specified in the agreement; and
ii.
the learner support specified in the agreement.
(3) A learnership agreement must be in the prescribed form and registered with a
SETA in the prescribed manner.
(4) A learnership agreement may not be terminated before the expiry of the
period of duration specified in the agreement unless-a. the learner meets the requirements for the successful completion of the
learnership;
b. the SETA which registered the agreement approves of such termination;
or
c. the learner is fairly dismissed for a reason related to the learner's conduct
or capacity as an employee.
(5) The employer or training provider that is party to a learnership agreement
may be substituted with-a. the consent of the learner; and
b. the approval of the SETA which registered the agreement.
(6) A SETA must, in the prescribed manner, provide the Director-General with a
record of learnership agreements registered by the SETA.
18. Contract of employment with learner.--(1) If a learner was in the
employment of the employer party to the learnership agreement concerned when
the agreement was concluded, the learner's contract of employment is not
affected by the agreement.
(2) If the learner was not in the employment of the employer party to the
learnership agreement concerned when the agreement was concluded, the
employer and learner must enter into a contract of employment.
(3) The contract of employment with a learner contemplated in subsection (2) is
subject to any terms and conditions that may be determined by the Minister on
the recommendation of the Employment Conditions Commission established by
section 59 (1) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act.
(4) Chapters Eight and Nine1 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act apply,
with the changes required by the context, to a determination made in terms of
subsection (3) except that-a. for the purposes of section 54 (3) of that Act, the Employment Conditions
Commission must also consider the likely impact that any proposed
condition of employment may have on the employment of learners and the
achievement of the purposes of this Act; and
b. section 55 (7) of that Act does not apply.
(5) The contract of employment of a learner may not be terminated before the
expiry of the period of duration specified in the learnership agreement unless the
learnership agreement is terminated in terms of section 17 (4).
(6) The contract of employment of a learner terminates at the expiry of the period
of duration specified in the learnership agreement unless the agreement was
concluded with a person who was already in the employment of the employer
party to the agreement when the agreement was concluded.
19. Disputes about learnerships.--(1) For the purposes of this section a
"dispute" means a dispute about-a. the interpretation or application of any provision of-i.
a learnership agreement;
ii.
(a contract of employment of a learner; or
iii.
a determination made in terms of section 18 (3);
b. this Chapter; or
c. the termination of-i.
a learnership agreement; or
ii.
a contract of employment of a learner.
(2) Any party to a dispute may in writing refer the dispute to the Commission for
Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration established by section 112 of the Labour
Relations Act, 1995 (Act No. 66 of 1995).
(3) The party who so refers the dispute must satisfy that Commission that a copy
of the referral has been served on all the other parties to the dispute.
(4) The Commission must attempt to resolve the dispute through conciliation.
(5) If the dispute remains unresolved, any party may request that the dispute be
resolved through arbitration as soon as possible.
(6) The law that applies to the lawfulness2 and fairness3 of a dismissal for a
reason related to an employee's capacity or conduct applies to a dispute
contemplated in subsection (1) (c) (ii).
CHAPTER
5
SKILLS PROGRAMMES
20. Skills programmes.--(1) For the purposes of this Chapter, a "skills
programme" means a skills programme that-a. is occupationally based;
b. when completed, will constitute a credit towards a qualification registered
in terms of the National Qualifications Framework as defined in section 1
of the South African Qualifications Authority Act;
c. uses training providers referred to in section 17 (1) (c); or
d. complies with the prescribed requirements.
(2) Any person that has developed a skills programme may apply to-a. a SETA with jurisdiction for a grant; or
b. the Director-General for a subsidy.
(3) The SETA or the Director-General may fund the skills programme if-a. it complies with-i.
subsection (1);
ii.
any requirements imposed by the SETA or the Director-General;
and
iii.
any prescribed requirements; and
b. it is in accordance with-i.
the sector skills development plan of the SETA; or
ii.
the national skills development strategy; and
c. there are funds available.
(4) A SETA or the Director-General may set any terms and conditions for funding
in terms of subsection (3) that the SETA or the Director-General, as the case may
be, considers necessary.
(5) The SETA or the Director-General must monitor the skills programmes
funded by the SETA or the Director-General, as the case may be.
(6) A SETA or the Director-General that has made funds available for a skills
programme may withhold funds or recover any funds paid if the SETA or the
Director-General, as the case may be, is of the opinion that-a. the funds are not being used for the purpose for which they were made
available;
b. any term or condition of the funding is not complied with; or
c. the SETA or the Director-General, as the case may be, is not satisfied that
the training is up to standard.
21. Disputes.--Any party to a dispute about the application or interpretation of-a. any term or condition of funding referred to in section 20 (4); or
b. any provision of this Chapter,
may refer the dispute to the Labour Court for adjudication.
DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT ACT 1998 (NO 97 OF 1998)
REGULATIONS CONCERNING THE REGISTRATION OF INTENDED
LEARNERSHIPS AND LEARNERSHIP AGREEMENTS
The Minister of Labour, after consultation with the National Skills Authority, has
made the regulations in the Schedule in terms of Section 36, read with sections
16(d) and 17 (3) and (6) of the Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act No. 97 of
1998).
M M S MDLADLANA
MINISTER OF LABOUR
SCHEDULE
CONTENTS LIST
1. Definitions
2. Registering Intended Learnership
3. Registering Learnership Agreement
4. Altering terms of Learnership Agreement
5. Substituting party to Learnership Agreement
6. Terminating Learnership Agreement
7. Making of decisions by SETA
8. Keeping of records
9. Referring of dispute
10. Short title
1. Definitions
In this Schedule any word or expression to which a meaning has been assigned
in the Act shall have the meaning so assigned, unless the context indicates
otherwise (a) "submit" means to deliver by hand or registered post or to transmit a
communication by electronic mechanism as a result of which the recipient is
capable of printing the communication
(b) "the Act" means the Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act No 97 of 1998).
2. Registering intended learnership
(1) A SETA applying to register an intended learnership, in terms of Section 16 of
the Act, must complete the registration form set out in Annexure A.
(2) The completed registration form referred to in sub-regulation (1) must be
submitted to the Director-General at one of the following addresses (a) when posted, be addressed to:
The Director-General: Department of Labour
Private Bag X117
Pretoria
0001; or
(b) when delivered by hand, be delivered to:
The Director-General: Department of Labour
215 Schoeman Street
Pretoria
(3) Upon registration of a learnership, the Director-General must i. issue a certificate of registration to the SETA; and
ii. allocate and issue a learnership code.
(4) A SETA may apply in writing to the Director-General to amend the registered
learnership.
(5) If the registered learnership is amended, the Director-General must amend the
relevant certificate of registration accordingly or issue a new certificate of
registration.
3. Registering Learnership Agreement
(1) A learnership agreement must be in the form set out in Annexure B.
(2) A SETA may require the parties to a learnership agreement to submit relevant
information in addition to that required in terms of sub-regulation (1).
(3) A SETA may register a learnership agreement in terms of section 17(3) of the
Act if (a) the Director-General has registered the learnership;
(b) a completed learnership agreement form referred to in sub-regulation
(1) has been submitted to the SETA in duplicate;
(c) all parties to the agreement have signed the agreement and, if the
learner is a minor , the learner's parent or guardian has signed the
agreement on behalf of the learner;
(d) the employer party to the learnership agreement falls within the scope
of coverage of the SETA;
(e) the terms of the agreement comply with the Act and any other
applicable law; and
(f) the learnership agreement was concluded before the start of the
learnership.
(4) A SETA may only register a learnership agreement to which a group of
employers is party if (a) one of the employers is identified in the agreement as the lead
employer; and
(b) the lead employer undertakes to ensure compliance with the
employer's duties in terms of the agreement.
(5) A SETA may only register a learnership agreement to which a group of
training providers is party if (a) one of the training providers is identified in the agreement as the lead
training provider; and
(b) the lead training provider undertakes to ensure compliance with the
training provider' duties in terms of the agreement.
(6) Within 30 days of receiving the learnership agreement, the SETA must decide
(a) whether or not to register the learnership agreement;
(b) in respect of every learnership agreement that is registered, whether or
not to pay a grant (i) towards the costs of the learnership;
(ii) towards the allowance to be paid to a learner who was not in the
employment of the employer at the time the learnership agreement
was concluded.
(7) A SETA must advise the employer of the amount of any grant that it will pay in
terms of sub-regulation 6(b).
(8) If a SETA decides not to register the learnership agreement, the SETA must
notify the parties to the agreement accordingly in writing, providing reasons
thereof.
(9) A SETA must record the name and the date of registration of each learnership
agreement that it registers and forthwith send a copy to each of the parties to the
agreement at the addresses stated in the agreement.
4. Altering terms of Learnership Agreement
(1) The parties to a learnership agreement registered with the relevant SETA
may, subject to the SETA's approval, alter the terms of the said agreement.
(2) A SETA may only register an alteration referred to in sub-regulation (1), if a
copy of the learnership agreement, together with the alterations to the said
agreement, signed by all the parties thereto, is submitted to the SETA.
5. Substituting a party to a Learnership Agreement
(1) A SETA may approve the substitution of the employer or the training provider
party to a learnership agreement in terms of section 17(5) of the Act if a
written application, accompanied by an agreement setting out the terms of the
substitution, is submitted to the SETA.
(2) The parties to a learnership agreement may, with the approval of the SETA,
substitute a new learnership agreement for a learnership agreement that the
SETA has already registered.
6. Terminating Learnership Agreement
(1) A SETA may approve the termination of a learnership agreement in terms of
section 17(4)(b) of the Act if (a) the employer and learner have agreed in writing to terminate the
agreement;
(b) the employer or employee has requested, on good cause, to terminate the
agreement and the other parties to the learnership agreement have had
the opportunity to make representations as to why the agreement should
not be terminated;
(c) the employee has terminated the contract of employment with the
employer; or
(d) the training provider has requested on good cause to terminate the
agreement and
(i) the other parties to the agreement have had the opportunity to make
representations; and
(ii) the SETA and the employer have been unable to arrange for a new
training provider to be substituted for the old training provider in
accordance with regulation 5 (1).
(2) An application to terminate a learnership agreement in terms of sub-regulation
(1) must be submitted to the SETA in writing together with (a) a copy of the relevant learnership agreement;
(b) in the case of sub-paragraph (a), a written agreement signed by the
employer and the learner setting out the reasons for the termination.
7. Making of decisions by SETA
A SETA must make any decision required in terms of these regulations within 30
working days of receiving the relevant documents.
8. Keeping of Records
(1) Every SETA must keep an updated record of (a) all learnership agreements registered by the SETA, including the title and
code of the learnerships;
(b) all grants paid by the SETA in respect of learnerships;
(c) all alterations to the terms of learnership agreements referred to in paragraph
4(a);
(d) all learnership agreements successfully concluded, including the title and
code of the learnerships;
(e) all learnership agreements that the SETA did not register and the reasons for
not registering the agreements; and
(f) all learnership agreements terminated in terms of regulation 6, including the
reasons for termination.
(2) Records referred to in sub-regulation (1) may be kept in any form, provided
that at least one set of the records is kept in hard copy.
9. Referring of dispute
(1) A party referring a dispute in terms of section 19(2) of the Act must submit a
completed Form 7.11 published in terms of the Labour Relations Act 66 of
1995 to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.
(2) The relevant provisions of Parts C and D of Chapter VII of the Labour
Relations Act 66 of 1995, read with the changes required by the context,
apply in respect of a dispute in terms of section 19 of the Act.
10. Short Title
These regulations are to be known as the Learnership Regulations, 2001.
DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR
NO. .......……………...
Date..........…………………..
BASIC CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT ACT 75 OF 1997
SECTORAL DETERMINATION NO 5: LEARNERSHIPS
I, Membathisi Mphumzi Shepherd Mdladlana, Minister of Labour, in terms of
Section 55(1) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act no 75 of 1997, read
together with Section 18(4) of the Skills Development Act, No 97 of 1998 hereby
make the sectoral determination establishing conditions of employment and rates
of allowances for learners in South Africa and fix the second Monday after the
date of publication of this notice as the date from which provisions of this
determination shall be binding upon all employers and learners in all sectors
where Sector Education Authorities (SETAs) have been established.
M.M.S. MDLADLANA, MP
Minister of Labour
SCHEDULE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Definitions
Area and scope of determination
Learner’s allowances
Calculation of remuneration and allowances
Payment of remuneration
Information about remuneration
Deductions and other acts concerning remuneration
Interpretation of day
Ordinary hours of work
Overtime
Compressed working week
Averaging of hours of work
Meal intervals
Daily and weekly rest period
PAGE NO.
2-4
4
4-5
6
6
7
7-8
8
8-9
9
9-10
10
10-11
11
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
Pay for work on Sundays
Night work
Public holidays
Emergency work
Annual leave
Pay for annual leave
Sick leave
Proof of incapacity
Application to occupational accidents and diseases
Maternity leave
Protection of learners before and after birth of a child
Family responsibility leave
Contract of employment
Informing learners of their rights
Keeping of records
Termination
Payments on termination
Certificate of service
Disputes about this determination
Keeping of the determination for learners
11-12
12-13
13-14
14
14-15
15-16
16-17
17
17
18
18
19-20
20-21
21
21
22
22
22
22
23
Annexure “A” Certificate of service
DEFINITIONS
1.
In this Act, unless the context indicates otherwise‘Act’ means the Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act No 97 of 1998)
'agreement' includes a collective agreement;
'allowance' means the amount of money paid or payable to a learner in respect of ordinary
hours of work or, if they are shorter, the hours a learner normally works in a day or week;
'bargaining council' means a bargaining council registered in terms of the Labour Relations
Act, 1995, and, in relation to the public service, includes the bargaining councils referred to in
section 35 of that Act;
'CCMA' means the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration established in terms
of section 112 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995;
'collective agreement' means a written agreement concerning terms and conditions of
employment or any other matter of mutual interest concluded by one or more registered trade
unions, on the one hand and, on the other hand(a)
(b)
(c)
one or more employers;
one or more registered employers' organisations; or
one or more employers and one or more registered employers’ organisation;
and includes a collective agreement concluded in a bargaining council and binding in terms of
either section 31 or 32 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995;
‘credit’ means a credit as defined in the Regulations made under the South African
Qualifications Authority Act, 1995 (Act 58 of 1995) published in Government Notice 18787 of 28
March 1998;
'dispute' includes an alleged dispute;
'Labour Relations Act, 1995' means the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (Act 66 of 1995);
'medical practitioner' means a person entitled to practise as a medical practitioner in terms of
section 17 of the Medical, Dental and Supplementary Health Service Professions Act, 1974 (Act
56 of 1974);
'midwife' means a person registered or enrolled to practise as a midwife in terms of section 16
of the Nursing Act, 1978 (Act 50 of 1978);
'Minister' means the Minister of Labour;
'month' means a calendar month;
'ordinary hours of work' means the hours of work permitted in terms of clause 9 or in terms of
any agreement in terms of clauses 11 or 12;
‘NQF level’ means a level of the National Technical Qualifications Framework referred to in the
regulation 3 of the Regulations made under the South African Qualifications Authority Act, 1995
(Act no. 58 of 1995) published in Government Notice 18787 of 28 March 1998;
'overtime' means the time that a learner works during a day or a week in excess of ordinary
hours of work;
'public holiday' means any day that is a public holiday in terms of the Public Holidays Act,
1994 (Act 36 of 1994);
'registered employers' organisation' means an employers' organisation registered under
section 96 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995;
'registered trade union' means a trade union registered under section 96 of the Labour
Relations Act, 1995;
'remuneration' means any payment in money or in kind, or both in money and in kind, made or
owing to any person in return for that person working for any other person, including the State,
and 'remunerate' has a corresponding meaning; 2
'sector' means an industry or a service or a part of an industry or a service;
'sectoral determination' means a sectoral determination made under Chapter Eight of the
Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997;
‘wage’ means the amount of money paid or payable to a learner in respect of ordinary hours of
work or, if they are shorter, the hours an employee ordinarily works in a day or a week;
2
Remuneration is given a specific meaning in clause 7(5).
'week' in relation to a learner, means the period of seven days within which the working week
of that learner ordinarily falls;
‘work’ includes any time that the learner is required to spend in study periods or theoretical
learning sessions with the training provider in terms of the learnership agreement’;
'workplace' means any place where learners work.
APPLICATION OF THIS DETERMINATION
2. (1) This determination applies to (a) the employment of a learner –
(i)
(ii)
who has concluded a learnership agreement in terms of section 17 of the
Act; and
who was not in the employment of the employer party to the learnership
agreement when the agreement was concluded.
(b)
to every employer who employs a learner contemplated in sub-paragraph (a) in respect
of the employment of that learner.
(2) (a)
This determination forms part of the contract of employment of any learner employed in
terms of section 18(2) of the Act.
(b)
Sub-paragraph (a) does not prevent an employer and a learner concluding a contract of
employment in terms of section 18(2) of the Act, which contains terms, and conditions
that are more favourable to the learner.
(3) This determination takes precedence over any collective agreement, except insofar as a
collective agreement concluded after this determination comes into effect expressly provides for
learners to receive an allowance or conditions of employment that are more favourable to the
employee than provided for in this determination.
LEARNER’S ALLOWANCES
3. (1) An employer must pay a learner an allowance calculated in terms of this clause.
(2) Subject to subclause 3, a learner’s allowance must be calculated as a percentage of the
qualified wage in accordance with column 3 of Table A.
(3) No learner may be paid less than the applicable allowance specified in
column 4 of Table A.
(4) For the purposes of this clause –
(a)
(b)
the “qualified wage” is the wage that the employer would pay the learner on
obtaining the qualification for which the learnership is registered ;
“wage” means the amount of money payable to an employee in respect of the
hours of work an employee normally works, excluding any overtime.
Table A
COLUMN 1
Exit level of
learnership
COLUMN 2
Credits already
earned by learner
NQF 1 or 2
0 – 120
121 – 240
0 – 120
121 – 240
241 – 360
0 – 120
121 – 240
241 – 360
361 – 480
0 - 120
120 – 240
240 – 360
361 – 480
481 – 600
NQF 3
NQF 4
NQF 5 to 8
COLUMN 3
Percentage of
qualified wage to
be paid as
allowance
35%
69%
17%
40%
53%
13%
25%
53%
56%
8%
18%
27%
38%
49%
COLUMN 4
Minimum
allowance per
week
R120.00
R240.00
R120.00
R226.00
R370.00
R120.00
R240.00
R370.00
R540.00
R120.00
R260.00
R389.00
R548.00
R700.00
CALCULATION OF REMUNERATION AND ALLOWANCES
4. (1) A learner's allowance is calculated by reference to the number of hours the learner normally
works.
(2) For the purposes of calculating the allowance of a learner, a learner is deemed normally to
work(a)
45 hours in a week, unless the learner ordinarily works a lesser number of
hours in a week;
(b)
nine hours in a day, or seven and a half hours in the case of a learner who
works for more than five days a week, or the number of hours that a learner
works in a day in terms of an agreement concluded in accordance with clause
11, unless the learner normally works a lesser number of hours in a day.
(3) A learner's monthly remuneration or allowance is four and one-third times the learner's weekly
remuneration or allowance, respectively.
(4) If a learner's remuneration or allowance fluctuates significantly from period to period, any
payment to that learner in terms of this Act must be calculated by reference to the learner's
remuneration or allowance during(a)
(b)
the preceding 13 weeks; or
if the learner has been in employment for a shorter period, that period.
PAYMENT OF REMUNERATION
5. (1) An employer must pay to a learner any remuneration that is paid in money(a)
(b)
(c)
in South African currency;
daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly; and
in cash, by cheque or by direct deposit into an account designated by the
learner.
(2) Any remuneration paid in cash or by cheque must be given to each learner(a)
(b)
(c)
at the workplace or at a place agreed to by the learner;
during the learner's working hours or within 15 minutes of the commencement
or conclusion of those hours; and
in a sealed envelope which becomes the property of the learner.
(3) An employer must pay remuneration not later than seven days after(a)
(b)
the completion of the period for which the remuneration is payable; or
the termination of the learnership.
(4) Subclause (3)(b) does not apply to any pension or provident fund payment to a learner that is
made in terms of the rules of the fund.
INFORMATION ABOUT REMUNERATION
6. (1) An employer must give a learner the following information in writing on each day the learner is
paid:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
the employer's name and address;
the learner's name and learnership;
the period for which the payment is made;
the learner's remuneration in money;
the amount and purpose of any deduction made from the remuneration;
the actual amount paid to the learner; and
if relevant to the calculation of that learner's remunerationthe learner's rate of remuneration and overtime rate;
the number of ordinary and overtime hours worked by the learner during the
period for which the payment is made;
the number of hours worked by the learner on a Sunday or public holiday
during that period; and
if an agreement to average working time has been concluded in terms of clause
12, the total number of ordinary and overtime hours worked by the learner in
the period of averaging.
(2) The written information required in terms of subclause (1) must be given to each learner(a)
(b)
at the workplace or at a place agreed to by the learner; and
during the learner's ordinary working hours or within 15 minutes of the
commencement or conclusion of those hours.
DEDUCTIONS AND OTHER ACTS CONCERNING REMUNERATION
7. (1) An employer may not make any deduction from a learner's remuneration unless(a)
(b)
subject to subclause (2), the learner in writing agrees to the deduction in
respect of a debt specified in the agreement; or
the deduction is required or permitted in terms of a law, collective agreement,
court order or arbitration award.
(2) A deduction in terms of subclause (1)(a) may be made to reimburse an employer for loss or
damage only if(a)
the loss or damage occurred in the course of employment and was due to the
fault of the learner;
(b)
the employer has followed a fair procedure and has given the learner a
reasonable opportunity to show why the deductions should not be made;
the total amount of the debt does not exceed the actual amount of the loss or
damage; and
the total deductions from the learner's remuneration in terms of this subclause
do not exceed one-quarter of the learner's remuneration in money.
(c)
(d)
(3) A deduction in terms of subclause (1)(a) in respect of any goods purchased by the learner
must specify the nature and quantity of the goods.
(4) An employer who deducts an amount from a learner's remuneration in terms of subclause (1)
for payment to another person must pay the amount to the person in accordance with the time
period and other requirements specified in the agreement, law, court order or arbitration award.
(5) An employer may not require or permit a learner to(a)
(b)
repay any remuneration except for overpayments previously made by the
employer resulting from an error in calculating the learner's remuneration; or
acknowledge receipt of an amount greater than the remuneration actually
received.
(6) An employer may not make any deduction from a learner’s remuneration, or require a learner to
repay any amount, in respect of any tools, materials, equipment, protective clothing, uniforms or
training material required for the purposes of the learnership.
INTERPRETATION OF DAY
8. For the purposes of clauses 9 to 15, 'day' means a period of 24 hours measured from the time when
the learner normally commences work and ‘daily’ has a corresponding meaning.
ORDINARY HOURS OF WORK
9. (1) Subject to clauses 8 to 18, an employer may not require or permit a learner to work more than(a)
(b)
(c)
45 hours in any week; and
nine hours in any day if the learner works for five days or fewer in week; or
eight hours in any day if the learner works on more than five days in a week.
(2) A learner's ordinary hours of work in terms of subclause (1) may by agreement be extended by
up to 15 minutes in a day but not more than 60 minutes in a week to enable a learner whose
duties include serving members of the public to continue performing those duties after the
completion of ordinary hours of work.
OVERTIME
10. (1) Subject to clauses 8 to 18, an employer may not require or permit a learner(a)
(b)
to work overtime except in accordance with an agreement;
to work more than(i) three hours' overtime a day;
(ii)
ten hours' overtime a week.
(2) An employer must pay a learner at least one and one-half times the learner's allowance for
overtime worked.
(3) Despite subclause (2), an agreement may provide for an employer to(a)
(b)
pay a learner not less than the learner's ordinary allowance for overtime worked
and grant the learner at least 30 minutes' time off on full pay for every hour of
overtime worked; or
grant a learner at least 90 minutes' paid time off for each hour of overtime
worked.
(4) (a)
An employer must grant paid time off in terms of subclause (3) within one month of the
learner becoming entitled to it.
(b) An agreement in writing may increase the period contemplated by paragraph (a) to 12
months.
(5) An agreement concluded in terms of subclause (1) with a learner when the learner commences
employment, or during the first three months of employment, lapses after one year.
COMPRESSED WORKING WEEK
11. (1) An agreement in writing may require or permit a learner to work up to twelve hours in a day,
inclusive of the meal intervals required in terms of clause 9, without receiving overtime pay.
(2) An agreement in terms of subclause (1) may not require or permit a learner to work(a)
(b)
(c)
more than 45 ordinary hours of work in any week;
more than ten hours' overtime in any week; or
on more than five days in any week.
AVERAGING OF HOURS OF WORK
12. (1) Despite clauses 9 (1) and (2) and 10 (1) (b), the ordinary hours of work and overtime of a
learner may be averaged over a period of up to four months in terms of a collective
agreement.
(2) An employer may not require or permit a learner who is bound by a collective agreement in
terms of subclause (1) to work more than(a)
(b)
(c)
an average of 45 ordinary hours of work in a week over the agreed period;
an average of five hours' overtime in a week over the agreed period;
twelve hours in a day, inclusive of the meal intervals required in terms of clause
13.
(3) A collective agreement in terms of subclause (1) lapses after 12 months.
(4) Subclause (3) only applies to the first two collective agreements concluded in terms of
subclause (1).
MEAL INTERVALS
13. (1) An employer must give a learner who works continuously for more than five hours a meal
interval of at least one continuous hour.
(2) During a meal interval the learner may be required or permitted to perform only duties that
cannot be left unattended and cannot be performed by another learner.
(3) A learner must be remunerated(a)
(b)
for a meal interval in which the learner is required to work or is required to be
available for work; and
for any portion of a meal interval that is in excess of 75 minutes, unless the
learner lives on the premises at which the workplace is situated.
(4) For the purposes of this clause, work is continuous unless it is interrupted by an interval of at
least 60 minutes.
(5) An agreement in writing may(a)
(b)
reduce the meal interval to not less than 30 minutes;
dispense with a meal interval for a learner who works fewer than six hours on a
day.
DAILY AND WEEKLY REST PERIOD
14. (1) An employer must allow a learner(a)
(b)
a daily rest period of at least twelve consecutive hours between ending and
recommencing work; and
a weekly rest period of at least 36 consecutive hours, which, unless otherwise
agreed, must include Sunday.
(2) A daily rest period in terms of subclause (1)(a) may, by written agreement, be reduced to 10
hours for a learner(a) who lives on the premises at which the workplace is situated; and
(b) whose meal interval lasts for at least three hours.
(3) Despite subclause (1)(b), an agreement in writing may provide for-
(a)
(b)
a rest period of at least 60 consecutive hours every two weeks; or
a learner's weekly rest period to be reduced by up to eight hours in any week if
the rest period in the following week is extended equivalently.
PAY FOR WORK ON SUNDAY
15. (1) An employer must pay a learner who works on a Sunday at double the learner's allowance for
each hour worked, unless the learner ordinarily works on a Sunday, in which case the
employer must pay the learner at one and one-half times the learner's allowance for each
hour worked.
(2) If a learner works less than the learner's ordinary shift on a Sunday and the payment that the
learner is entitled to in terms of subclause (1) is less than the learner's ordinary daily
allowance, the employer must pay the learner the learner's daily allowance.
(3) Despite subclauses (1) and (2), an agreement may permit an employer to grant a learner who
works on a Sunday paid time off equivalent to the difference in value between the pay received
by the learner for working on the Sunday and the pay that the learner is entitled to in terms of
subclauses (1) and (2).
(4) Any time worked on a Sunday by a learner who does not ordinarily work on a Sunday is not
taken into account in calculating a learner's ordinary hours of work in terms of clause 9 (1) and
(2), but is taken into account in calculating the overtime worked by the learner in terms of
clause 10 (1)(b).
(5) If a shift worked by a learner falls on a Sunday and another day, the whole shift is deemed to
have been worked on the Sunday, unless the greater portion of the shift was worked on the
other day, in which case the whole shift is deemed to have been worked on the other day.
(6) (a) An employer must grant paid time off in terms of subclause (3) within one month of the
learner becoming entitled to it.
(b) An agreement in writing may increase the period contemplated by paragraph (a) to 12
months.
NIGHT WORK
16. (1) In this clause, 'night work' means work performed after 18:00 and before 06:00 the next day.
(2) An employer may only require or permit a learner to perform night work, if so agreed, and if(a)
(b)
the learner is compensated by the payment of an allowance, which may be a
shift allowance, or by a reduction of working hours; and
transportation is available between the learner's place of residence and the
workplace at the commencement and conclusion of the learner's shift.
(3) An employer who requires a learner to perform work on a regular basis after 23:00 and before
06:00 the next day must(a)
inform the learner in writing, or orally if the learner is not able to understand a
written communication, in a language that the learner understands-
(i) of any health and safety hazards associated with the work that the learner
is required to perform; and
(ii)
of the learner's right to undergo a medical examination in terms of
paragraph (b);
(b)
at the request of the learner, enable the learner to undergo a medical
examination, for the account of the employer, concerning those hazards(i) before the learner starts, or within a reasonable period of the learner
starting, such work; and
(ii)
at appropriate intervals while the learner continues to perform
such work; and
(c)
(i)
(ii)
transfer the learner to suitable day work within a reasonable time ifthe learner suffers from a health condition associated with the performance of
night work; and
it is practicable for the employer to do so.
(4) For the purposes of subclause (3), a learner works on a regular basis if the learner works for a
period of longer than one hour after 23:00 and before 06:00 at least five times per month or 50
times per year.
(5) The record of any medical examination performed in terms of this determination must be kept
confidential and may be made available only(a) in accordance with the ethics of medical practice;
(b) if required by law or court order; or
(c) if the employee has in writing consented to the release of that information.
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS3
17. (1) An employer may not require a learner to work on a public holiday except in accordance with
an agreement.
(2) If a public holiday falls on a day on which a learner would ordinarily work, an employer must
pay(a)
(b)
a learner who does not work on the public holiday, at least the allowance that
the learner would ordinarily have received for work on that day;
a learner who does work on the public holiday(i) at least double the amount referred to in paragraph (a); or
(ii)
if it is greater, the amount referred to in paragraph (a) plus the amount
earned by the learner for the time worked on that day.
(3) If a learner works on a public holiday on which the learner would not ordinarily work, the
employer must pay that learner an amount equal to(a)
3
the learner's daily allowance; plus
In terms of section 2(2) of the Public Holidays Act, 1994 (Act 36 of 1994), a public holiday is exchangeable for
any other day, which is fixed by agreement or agreed to between the employer and the employee.
(b)
the amount earned by the learner for the work performed that day.
(4) An employer must pay a learner for a public holiday on the learner's usual pay day.
(5) If a shift worked by a learner falls on a public holiday and another day, the whole shift is
deemed to have been worked on the public holiday, but if the greater portion of the shift was
worked on the other day, the whole shift is deemed to have been worked on the other day.
EMERGENCY WORK
18. (1) An employer may only require or permit a learner to work in excess of the limits on working
times prescribed in clauses 8 to 17 in order to perform work which is required to be done
without delay owing to circumstances for which the employer could not reasonably have been
expected to make provision and which cannot be performed by employees during their
ordinary working hours of work.
(2) Any work that any learner performs in terms of subclause (1) must be remunerated(a)
(b)
at overtime rates in accordance with clause 10(2), or
if it is performed on a Sunday or on a public holiday at the applicable rate in
terms of clause 15 or 17 respectively.
ANNUAL LEAVE
19. (1) A learner who has entered into a learnership agreement in respect of learnership requiring
more than 120 credits is entitled to one week’s paid leave for every 40 credits that the learner
earns during the learnership or every four months worked whichever is the lesser.
(2) A learner is entitled to take leave referred to in subclause (1) during learnership.
(3) A learner who has accumulated sufficient leave is entitled to take up to three weeks leave
consecutively in any year of the learnership.
(4) Unless a learner elects to accumulate leave for the purpose of subclause (3), an employer
must grant leave not later than four months after the leave was earned.
(5) An employer may not require or permit a learner to take annual leave during(a) any other period of leave to which the learner is entitled in terms of clauses 21, 24
and 26; or
(b) any period of notice of termination of learnership.
(6) Despite subclause (5), an employer must permit a learner, at the learner's written request, to
take leave during a period of unpaid leave.
(7) An employer may reduce a learner's entitlement to leave by the number of days of occasional
leave on full remuneration granted to the learner at the learner's request.
(8) An employer must grant a learner an additional day of paid leave if a public holiday falls on a
day during a learner's annual leave on which the learner would ordinarily have worked.
(9) An employer may not require or permit a learner to work for the employer during any period of
annual leave.
(10) Leave must be taken(a)
or
(b)
in accordance with an agreement between the employer and learner;
if there is no agreement in terms of paragraph (a), at a time determined by the
employer in accordance with this clause.
(11) An employer may not pay a learner instead of granting paid leave in terms of this clause
except(a)
(b)
on termination of learnership; and
in accordance with clause 31(b).
PAY FOR ANNUAL LEAVE
20. (1) An employer must pay a learner leave pay at least equivalent to the remuneration that the
learner would have received for working for a period equal to the period of annual leave,
calculated at the learner's rate of remuneration immediately before the beginning of the period
of leave.
(2) For the purposes of calculating a learner's leave pay, a learner's remuneration(a)
(b)
includes the cash value of any payment in kind that forms part of the learner's
remuneration unless the learner receives that payment in kind during the period
of leave; but
excludes(i) gratuities;
(ii)
allowances paid to a learner for the purposes of enabling a learner to
work; and
(iii)
any discretionary payments not related to the learner's hours of work or
work performance.
(3) An employer must pay a learner leave pay(a)
(b)
before the beginning of the period of leave; or
by agreement, on the learner's usual pay day.
SICK LEAVE
21. (1) A learner is entitled to one day’s paid sick leave for every 26 days, in which the learner works
or receives training during a learnership.
(2) Subject to clause 22, an employer must pay a learner for a day's sick leave(a)
the allowance the learner would ordinarily have received for work on that day;
and
(b)
on the learner's usual pay day.
(3) An agreement may reduce the pay to which a learner is entitled in respect of any day's
absence in terms of this clause if(a)
the number of days of paid sick leave is increased at least commensurately
with any reduction in the daily amount of sick pay; and
(b)
the learner's entitlement to pay-
(ii)
(i) for any day's sick leave is at least 75 per cent of the allowance payable to
the learner for the ordinary hours the learner would have worked on that
day; and
for sick leave over the sick leave cycle is at least equivalent to the learner's
entitlement in terms of subclause (2).
PROOF OF INCAPACITY
22. (1) An employer is not required to pay a learner in terms of clause 21 if the learner has been
absent from work for more than two consecutive days or on more than two occasions during
an eight-week period and, on request by the employer, does not produce a medical certificate
stating that the learner was unable to work for the duration of the learner's absence on
account of sickness or injury.
(2) The medical certificate must be issued and signed by a medical practitioner or any other
person who is certified to diagnose and treat patients and who is registered with a professional
council established by an Act of Parliament.
(3) If it is not reasonably practicable for a learner who lives on the employer's premises to obtain a
medical certificate, the employer may not withhold payment in terms of subclause (1) unless
the employer provides reasonable assistance to the learner to obtain the certificate.
APPLICATION TO OCCUPATIONAL ACCIDENTS OR DISEASES
23.
Clauses 21 and 22 do not apply to an inability to work caused by an accident or occupational
disease as defined in the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act, 1993
(Act 130 of 1993), or the Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act, 1973 (Act 78 of
1973), except in respect of any period during which no compensation is payable in terms of
those Acts.
MATERNITY LEAVE4
4
In terms of section 187(1)(e) of the Labour Relations Act, 1995, the dismissal of an employee on account of her
pregnancy, intended pregnancy, or any reason related to her pregnancy, is automatically unfair. The definition
24. (1) (a)
(b)
A learner is entitled to at least four consecutive months' maternity leave.
A learner is not entitled to receive her allowance during any period of maternity leave she
takes.
(2) A learner may commence maternity leave(a)
(b)
at any time from four weeks before the expected date of birth, unless otherwise
agreed; or
on a date from which a medical practitioner or a midwife certifies that it is
necessary for the learner's health or that of her unborn child.
(3) No learner may work for six weeks after the birth of her child, unless a medical practitioner or
midwife certifies that she is fit to do so.
(4) A learner who has a miscarriage during the third trimester of pregnancy or bears a stillborn
child is entitled to maternity leave for six weeks after the miscarriage or stillbirth, whether or
not the learner had commenced maternity leave at the time of the miscarriage or stillbirth.
(5) A learner must notify an employer in writing, unless the learner is unable to do so, of the date
on which the learner intends to(a)
(b)
commence maternity leave; and
return to work after maternity leave.
(6) Notification in terms of subclause (5) must be given(a)
(b)
at least four weeks before the learner intends to commence maternity leave; or
if it is not reasonably practicable to do so, as soon as is reasonably practicable.
PROTECTION OF LEARNERS BEFORE AND AFTER BIRTH OF A CHILD
25. (1) No employer may require or permit a pregnant learner or a learner who is nursing her child to
perform work that is hazardous to her health or the health of her child.
(2) During a learner's pregnancy, and for a period of six months after the birth of her child, her
employer must offer her suitable, alternative employment on terms and conditions that are no
less favourable than her ordinary terms and conditions of employment, if(a)
(b)
the learner is required to perform night work, as defined in clause 16 (1) or her
work poses a danger to her health or safety or that of her child; and
it is practicable for the employer to do so.
FAMILY RESPONSIBILITY LEAVE
26. (1) This clause applies to a learner(a)
who has been in employment with an employer for longer than four months;
and
of dismissal in section 186 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995, includes the refusal to allow an employee to
resume work after she has taken maternity leave in terms of any law, collective agreement or her contract.
(b)
who works for at least four days a week for that employer.
(2) An employer must grant a learner, during each annual leave cycle, at the request of the
learner, three days' paid leave, which the learner is entitled to take(a)
(b)
(c)
(i)
(ii)
when the learner's child is born;
when the learner's child is sick; or
in the event of the death ofthe learner's spouse or life partner; or
the learner's parent, adoptive parent, grandparent, child, adopted child, grandchild
or sibling.
(3) Subject to subclause (5), an employer must pay a learner for a day's family responsibility
leave(a)
(b)
the allowance the learner would ordinarily have received for work on that day;
and
on the learner's usual pay day.
(4) A learner may take family responsibility leave in respect of the whole or a part of a day.
(5) Before paying a learner for leave in terms of this clause, an employer may require reasonable
proof of an event contemplated in subclause (2) for which the leave was required.
(6) A learner's unused entitlement to leave in terms of this clause lapses at the end of the annual
leave cycle in which it accrues.
(7) A collective agreement may vary the number of days and the circumstances under which leave
is to be granted in terms of this clause.
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT
27. (1) A contract of employment concluded between an employer and a learner in terms of section
18(2) of the Act must –
(a)
(b)
(c)
be in writing and be signed by the employer and the learner;
be concluded when the learner commences employment; and
to the extent appropriate, contain the following particulars:
(i) the full name and address of the employer;
(ii)
the name of the learner and the learnership;
(iii)
the place of work, and, where the learner is required or permitted to work
at various places, an indication of this;
(iv)
the date on which the employment began;
(v)
the learner's ordinary hours of work and days of work, including the time
that the learner is required to spend in study periods or theoretical
learning sessions with the training provider;
(vi)
the learner's allowance or the rate and method of calculating the
allowance;
(vii)
the rate of pay for overtime work;
(viii) any other cash payments that the learner is entitled to;
(ix)
any payment in kind that the learner is entitled to and the value of the
payment in kind;
(x)
(xi)
(xii)
(xiii)
(xiv)
how frequently remuneration will be paid;
any deductions to be made from the learner's remuneration;
the leave to which the learner is entitled;
the date when employment is to terminate;
a list of any other documents that form part of the contract of
employment, indicating a place that is reasonably accessible to the
learner where a copy of each may be obtained.
(2) The leaner must be supplied with a copy of the contract of employment.
(3) When any matter listed in subclause (1) changes(a)
(b)
the contract of employment must be revised to reflect the change;
the employer and the learner must initial the change; and
(c)
the learner must be supplied with a copy of the contract reflecting the change.
(4) If a learner is not able to understand the written contract, the employer must ensure that it is
explained to the learner in a language and in a manner that the learner understands.
(5) A contract of employment in terms of this clause must be kept by the employer for a period of
three years after the termination of the learnership.
INFORMING LEARNERS OF THEIR RIGHTS
28. An employer must display at the workplace where it can be read by learners a statement in the
prescribed form of the learner’s rights under this Act in the official languages, which are spoken in
the workplace.
KEEPING OF RECORDS
29. (1) Every employer must keep a record containing at least the following information:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
the learner's name and learnership;
the time worked by each learner;
the remuneration paid to each learner;
the date of birth of any learner under 18 years of age.
(2) A record in terms of subclause (1) must be kept by the employer for a period of three years
from the termination of the learnership.
(3) No person may make a false entry in a record maintained in terms of subclause (1).
.
TERMINATION
30. (1) An employer may only terminate the contract of employment of a learner if–
(a)
(b)
the period of duration specified in the learnership agreement has expired;
the learner successfully completes the learnership;
(c)
(d)
the employer and learner have agreed in writing to terminate the learnership
agreement, or if there is no such agreement the SETA which registered the agreement
approves its termination; or
the learner is fairly dismissed for a reason related to the learner’s conduct or capacity
as an employee.
PAYMENTS ON TERMINATION
31. (1) On termination of employment, an employer must pay a learner(a) for any paid time off that the learner is entitled to in terms of clause 10 (3) or 15 (3) and
that the learner has not taken;
(b) remuneration calculated in accordance with clause 20(2) for any period of leave due in
terms of clause 19(1) that the learner has not taken.
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
32. (1) On termination of employment a learner is entitled to a certificate of service substantially in the
form of annexure “A” stating-
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
the learner's full name;
the name and address of the employer;
a description of any council or sectoral employment standard by which the employer’s
business is covered;
the date of commencement and date of termination of the learners’ employment with the
employer;
a brief description of the training and work experience received by the learner;
the remuneration at date of termination;
if the learner so requests, the reason for termination of employment.
DISPUTES ABOUT THIS DETERMINATION
33. (1) A party dispute in terms of this determination may refer the dispute to the CCMA by submitting
a completed Form 7.11 published in terms of the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995.
(2) The party who refers a dispute in terms of subclause (1) must satisfy the CCMA that a copy of
the referral has been served on all the other parties to the dispute.
(3) The relevant provisions of Part C and D, Chapter VII of the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995,
read with the changes required by the context, apply in respect of a dispute referred to in
terms of subclause (1).
KEEPING OF THE DETERMINATION FOR LEARNERS
34. (1) Every employer on whom this determination is binding must(a) keep a copy of the determination available in the workplace at all times;
(b) make the copy available for inspection by a learner; and
(c) give a copy of the determination(i)
(ii)
to a learner who has paid the prescribed fee; and
free of charge, on request, to a learner who is a trade union representative or a
member of a workplace forum.
DETERMINATION OF
ANNEXURE “A”
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
OF EMPLOYMENT FOR
LEARNERS
I ………………………………………………………………………………
(Name and designation of person)
READ THIS FIRST
of

…………………………………………………………………………………
(Full name of employer)
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE
OF THIS FORM?
Address:
…………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………
This form is proof of
in the …………………………………..…………………………….. (Trade)
learnership with an
employer.
declare that
WHO FILLS IN THIS
…………………………………………………………………………………
FORM?
(Full name of learner)
The employer.
…………………………………………………………………………………
(I.D. no.)
WHERE DOES THIS
FORM GO?
was in learnership
To the learner.
from …………………………….….. until ……………...…………………..
INSTRUCTIONS
as
This form may be issued
…………………………………………………………………………………
upon termination of
(Type of learnership)
learnership.
NOTE
…………………………………………………………………………………
The reason for termination
of learnership must only be
given if requested by the
learner.
any other information………………………………………………………..
This is only a model and not
a prescribed form.
Completing a document in
another format containing
the same information is
sufficient compliance with
clause 32.
…………………………..………………………………. (Amount in words)
On termination of learnership this learner was earning: R……………….
 per hour  per day  per week  per fortnight  per month  per year
……………………………………….
Employer’s signature
…………………………
Date