Page 5 - Business Studies Grade 12
P. 5
TERM 1
TOPIC 1: MACRO ENVIRONMENT – IMPACT OF RECENT
LEGISLATION ON BUSINESS.
UNIT 1
THE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT ACT NUMBER 97 OF 1998 AS AMENDED BY ACT
31 OF 2003
1.1 The nature of the Skills Development Act (SDA).
This act provides for:
The establishment of a National Skills Authority which advises the Minister
of Labour on matters such as the national skills policy, national skills
development strategy and allocation of subsidies from the National Skills
Fund.
The establishment of Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs).
It focuses on developing and improving the skills of the South Africa
workforce.
It gives the Minister of Labour powers to manage and monitor the
performance of SETAs.
The Act came as a result of the impact of apartheid which created serious
shortages of skills leading to high unemployment among non-whites.
The SDA, therefore, is part of the National Skills Development Strategy
which aims to link learning to the demands of the workplace. It also aims to
develop the skills of workers and enable these workers to be productive
and competitive.
1.2 The purpose of the Skills Development Act.
To improve skills of the people in order to improve productivity.
To encourage businesses to invest in education and training of workers.
To encourage businesses to improve the skills of their workers.
To improve the chances of people who were previously disadvantaged
getting jobs.
To redress previous apartheid disadvantages through education and
training.
To encourage workers to participate in learnerships and training
programmes in order to become skilled.
To ensure quality education and training that is globally competitive.
To develop skills of the South African workforce so that it meets the
demands and needs of the different industries.
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