Learnerships and skills program
Skills programmes A skills programme is a unit standard or combination of unit standards that lead to an employable skill and earn a credit on the NQF towards a qualification.
Skills programmes are compiled by employers or providers once a need for a particular skill/s has been identified. They are registered with the SETA and must be certificated through the NQF-based accreditation route (the same quality assurer who certifies the full qualification of which these standards are part must certify the skills programme).
Before registering a skills programme, the SETA will assess whether: • there is a need for the proposed skills in the labour market and locality.
• There is evidence of the learnership (or qualification) to which the skills programme ultimately will contribute.
• The combination of unit standards are recognised in the context of an area of learning that eventually forms a learnership.
• A career path or employment opportunities exist for the learner (this is to provide guidance to the learner and provider).
• Links exist with general education requirements as well as formal qualifications (ie skills programmes must articulate clearly with formal education systems as well as with any other unit standards that may not form part of the package initially, eg communication and numeracy). Learnerships versus skills programmes Learnerships
| Skills programmes | | Formally registered via a SETA with the Department of Labour | Formally registered or recorded by a SETA.
* this procedure has yet to be finalised | | An integrated learning programme delivered according to a predetermined curriculum | Need to comply with a clearly described structure – unit standards, outcomes etc | | Usually completed as stand-alone units. | Components of a learnership may be completed as a skills programme, eg by learners who require specific skills but who do not wish or need to complete the full learnership. Learners would gain credits towards a learnership by completing parts as skills programmes | | Has a minimum of 120 credits on the NQF. Maximum number not specified. | Number of credits not specified, provided that the programme includes at least one full unit standard. A skills programme may also be developed around a cluster of unit standards that make up a skills cluster relevant to an occupation.
| | At least 10 – 12 months in duration, as 120 credits represents 1 200 notional hours of learning | Duration not fixed and can vary widely depending on the time required to achieve the specific outcomes. | | Requires a formal learnership agreement involving the learner, the employer and the provider. | Relationship between institutional and workplace learning is usually not formally described. | | The relationship between and integration of institutional and workplace learning is usually clearly set out in the description of the learnership and/or its learning programme | |
Learnerships versus skills programmes Learnerships must have an agreement that is signed by the employer, training provider and the learner. This agreement must be registered with a Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA). Definition
A learnership agreement is a contract for a specific time period between
• a learner; • an employer; and
• a training provider. Employer’s Duties
The learnership agreement must require the employer to give the learner • a job for a specific time period;
• practical work experience; and
• time to go to classes Learner’s Duties
The learnership agreement must require the learner to: • work for the employer; and
• attend classes Training Provider’s Duties
The learnership agreement must require the training provider to provide: • education and training, and
• support to the learners Registration with a SETA
Learnership agreements must be registered with a SETA.
Ending a Learnership Agreement Learnership agreements may not be ended before their end date unless • learners o complete all the work before the time;
o are dismissed because of bad behaviour;
o are not able to be good workers; or • the SETA that the learnership is registered with approves it. Basic Guide to Learnership Contracts If learners are not already working for employers, they must sign an employment contract with employers. The contract ends when the learnership ends. Eligibility
If learners are already working for the employer, they do not need to get a new contract.
All new learners, and learners who were previously unemployed or worked for another employer, must get a new contract. Contents
The contract must contain the information specified in Sectoral Determination 5: Learnerships. Termination
The contract cannot be ended before the learnership has ended.
The contract ends when the learnership is completed or the learnership agreement is ended because of specific reasons. Basic Guide to Learnership Requirements Learnerships must have properly prepared learning material. It must also include practical work. Learnership Requirements
A Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) may only start a learnership if that learnership • has properly prepared learning material;
• includes practical work experience;
• will lead to a qualification registered with the South African Qualifications Association (SAQA); and
• is registered with the Department of Labour. Learnership Guide for Employers Including Annextures Learnership Guide for Training Providers Learnership Guide for Learners Learnership Implimentation Process - 10 Step Guide Page Created: Friday, October 17, 2008
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