It is important to take note of some changes in the SETA landscapes that might influence your companies planning and implementation of Skills Development for BBBEEE purposes. The intention of this newsletter is not to try and explain each of the 27 SETA processes but make you aware of the requirements and timelines that are often a challenge should planning and implementation be delayed to the latter part of the Financial Year End of the measured entity.
Most SETA’s are slowly moving from paper based learnership application and submission to on line systems. Some systems work better than others but most still have serious teething problems. Many new requirements have been introduced and we would like to give a generalized picture of the process and timelines to assist your understanding, to enable timely decisions and implement without risk.
Some SETA’s require an application to be submitted (Letter of Intent/Performance Agreement etc) The time for approval of this application varies between the SETA’s but it can take up to 60 working days.
In addition to the above some qualifications require a workplace approval to be done by the SETA which is a timeline completely in the hands of the SETA. It might also be required for certain qualifications to register and upload onto the SETA system a mentor who is qualified, and all supporting documentation will need to be loaded onto the system and approved by the SETA.
The impact of this is that the learnership potentially can only start once the application period has expired and the approval by the SETA has been received and they have issued a start date. Documentation for these applications vary from SETA to SETA and your Skills consultant will assist with the specifics and ensure the application is completed and submitted correctly.
After these applications, the selected learners’ details are loaded onto the SETA system which generates the Learner Agreement that needs to be fully signed and uploaded on the system with all supporting documentation for each learner.
In some SETA cases only at this point the actual start date will come into effect.
The proof of registration is another sore point as it is needed for your BBBEE verification agency. There is no blanket policy or rule within the SETA’s on how this is issued or is issued at all and needs to be closely monitored and managed by the Skills Consultant. Having the verification shortly after the implementation can potentially result in these not available yet. Some of the SETA’s have a huge backlog of registrations, due to inefficiencies of the past, change of systems and Covid-19 lockdown.
Walking this path can be challenging without the correct Skills Partner. Our advice is to make the decisions early in your financial year, do not delay and risk spending the money and not having the reward. Having enough time to plan the correct interventions needed to benefit the company but also the learners involved are essential.
Your BBBEE consultant supplies us with the targets, and we will do a plan specific to your needs, addressing the PIVITOL skills of your sector (if required) and ensure meaningful qualifications are implemented.
Let us help you to Change Lives through Skills Development and not only earn BBBEE points. Skills Development should benefit all parties.
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