SKILLS DEVELOPMENT: LEARNERSHIPS AND TRAINING

AEL

A framework for implementing an AEL Management Development Programme has been approved in concept. This programme focuses on middle managers and is designed to strengthen AEL's leadership capability and capacity. It will be managed by an independent professional who will serve as programme co-ordinator from 2010.

To provide the technical skills required for AEL's plant automation initiatives, learnerships are in place for chemical operations and engineering. Furthermore, the company seeks to preserve employment by upgrading the skills of identified individuals employed in the older, non-automated plants.

Those undergoing training attend technical courses at the Ekurhuleni West College for theoretical input, which is followed by artisan development activities at AEL's Technical Training Centre, at Modderfontein. A total of 33 learners participated in the programme in 2009, 16 of whom were from the relevant Sectoral Education and Training Authority (SETA)-sponsored unemployed learner programme.

AEL met its engineering training target in the year, with nine learners qualifying at NQF level 4 in chemical engineering.

As part of the company's initiative to develop internal expertise, various in-house courses are offered on mining operations. A total of 162 employees attended mining-related courses, including the Basic Explosives Introductory Course, the Blasting Certificate Course, the Blasting Competency Programme, and courses in Blasting in Open Cast Mines/Quarries, Blasting Operations and Mining Engineering.

CHEMSERVE

The growth and advancement of employees remains at the core of Chemserve's human capital development strategy. Accordingly, training and development initiatives in 2009 focused on skills acquisition, talent retention and employment equity goals.

Some of the main interventions implemented, over and above skills-, safety-, health- and environment-related training, included:

• the Chemserve Management Development Programme, which is becoming an integral part of employee development. Currently, 141 employees participate in this programme. The plan is to have at least 10% of the total employee complement participating at any given time;
• 10 senior employees from various Chemserve subsidiaries successfully participated in the Nine Conversations in Leadership Programme, facilitated by a management consultant. The programme is aimed at consolidating and broadening leadership capacity within the group. An additional 20 senior employees will be nominated to participate in the programme in 2010;
• Chemserve continued to offer in-service training to 18 students from various universities of technology, primarily in the chemistry and chemical engineering disciplines;
• the group has entered into artisan and chemical operations learnership agreements with 35 learners, an increase of 10 from the previous reporting period;
• to control training and development costs, Chemserve has built a fully equipped Training Centre at its Chloorkop site. This facility is used by all of Chemserve's companies in South Africa;
• the Chemserve Technical Training Centre at Umbogintwini is fully operational and received provisional accreditation from the Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority (CHIETA). Training of both unemployed and employed learners for chemical operations at NQF level 2 has started. This centre is also utilised for other training courses initiated by Chemserve subsidiary companies in the KwaZulu-Natal region.

HEARTLAND

Whilst management development and generic skills training continued, Heartland's specific focus remained on apprentices and in-service trainees. The apprentice complement increased to 10, five fitters and five in electrical disciplines. This is in line with the requirements of the National Skills Development Strategy and those of the CHIETA, with partial funding having been procured from the latter's Discretionary Grant process.