An update on how productivity and decent work are being boosted in South African SMEs
ILO's Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work programme in South Africa partners with Productivity SA and the South African Footwear and Leather Export Council (SAFLEC) to promote technical capabilities, advance productivity growth and increase exports
11 March 2024
Extensive consultations are finalised with project partners to address productivity and decent work challenges. Clear cooperation between industry stakeholders and targeted interventions are required to overcome these challenges.
The ILO will collaborate with Productivity SA as the technical partner of the project, under the Department of Employment and Labour, to promote productivity and an entrepreneurship culture, with an aim to create decent employment and sustainable enterprises. This involves opportunities for work that is productive, and which delivers fair income through productivity enhancing interventions in the leather, leather products, and footwear sector, and the automotive sector. The ILO and Productivity SA will sign an implementation agreement and move towards executing joint interventions.
The programme team visited enterprises within the automotive and the leather and footwear sectors, who participated in a Productivity SA productivity improvement programme last year. A total of 53 enterprises benefited from understanding what productivity is, how to measure it, how it can be improved, and staff role in its enhancement. Enterprises were equipped with training and tools to apply decent and productive workplace practices.
“The training programme was a wakeup call to say the business needs to be in this fashion. Learning about 5S cleaning and shine made us realise that there is a lot that needs to be done. We are now shining as a business and the training will give us a leeway to get opportunities from the automotive insurance market for securities against accidents”- Bongani Shoba, JBL Auto
The enterprise visits gave the team an opportunity to engage with SMEs supported under the project. The SMEs benefited from productivity improvement training and methods to promote productivity. It was encouraging to learn from the enterprises how participating in the training contributed to changes that had a positive impact on productivity and decent work.
The Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work programme will also join forces with the South African Footwear and Leather Export Council (SAFLEC) to address designer capabilities that hinder growth and job creation within the leather, leather goods, and footwear sectors. South Africa's footwear and leather industry grapples with a pronounced design deficiency, undermining its ability to compete effectively in the global marketplace. This gap not only stifles innovation but also limits the industry's capacity to meet the evolving demands of international consumers.
Historically, South African manufacturers have faced significant barriers in accessing leading courses in Italy, primarily due to prohibitive costs. In response, SAFLEC will lower barriers to entry by leveraging a grant from the project to bring expert international instructors directly to local manufacturers. SAFLEC will organize awareness workshops on ongoing global trends for the designers in the sector.
Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work is a global multi-country programme initiated by the ILO in 2021, with operations in Ghana, South Africa and Vietnam. It is funded by the governments of Switzerland and Norway and seeks to promote productivity growth and decent work, combining different approaches that strengthen productivity drivers across policy, sector and enterprise levels.
The ILO will collaborate with Productivity SA as the technical partner of the project, under the Department of Employment and Labour, to promote productivity and an entrepreneurship culture, with an aim to create decent employment and sustainable enterprises. This involves opportunities for work that is productive, and which delivers fair income through productivity enhancing interventions in the leather, leather products, and footwear sector, and the automotive sector. The ILO and Productivity SA will sign an implementation agreement and move towards executing joint interventions.
The programme team visited enterprises within the automotive and the leather and footwear sectors, who participated in a Productivity SA productivity improvement programme last year. A total of 53 enterprises benefited from understanding what productivity is, how to measure it, how it can be improved, and staff role in its enhancement. Enterprises were equipped with training and tools to apply decent and productive workplace practices.
“The training programme was a wakeup call to say the business needs to be in this fashion. Learning about 5S cleaning and shine made us realise that there is a lot that needs to be done. We are now shining as a business and the training will give us a leeway to get opportunities from the automotive insurance market for securities against accidents”- Bongani Shoba, JBL Auto
The enterprise visits gave the team an opportunity to engage with SMEs supported under the project. The SMEs benefited from productivity improvement training and methods to promote productivity. It was encouraging to learn from the enterprises how participating in the training contributed to changes that had a positive impact on productivity and decent work.
The Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work programme will also join forces with the South African Footwear and Leather Export Council (SAFLEC) to address designer capabilities that hinder growth and job creation within the leather, leather goods, and footwear sectors. South Africa's footwear and leather industry grapples with a pronounced design deficiency, undermining its ability to compete effectively in the global marketplace. This gap not only stifles innovation but also limits the industry's capacity to meet the evolving demands of international consumers.
Historically, South African manufacturers have faced significant barriers in accessing leading courses in Italy, primarily due to prohibitive costs. In response, SAFLEC will lower barriers to entry by leveraging a grant from the project to bring expert international instructors directly to local manufacturers. SAFLEC will organize awareness workshops on ongoing global trends for the designers in the sector.
Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work is a global multi-country programme initiated by the ILO in 2021, with operations in Ghana, South Africa and Vietnam. It is funded by the governments of Switzerland and Norway and seeks to promote productivity growth and decent work, combining different approaches that strengthen productivity drivers across policy, sector and enterprise levels.