Labour Recruitment Services Subsector
About the Sector
Recruitment is the process of searching for, attracting, screening and finally selecting a suitable person for a job. The South African commercial industry and public sector drives a thriving recruitment industry which provides a wide range of services to a large pool of new entrants, re-entrants, job leavers and other job seekers. Below are industries represented under this subsector:
Permanent Employment Agencies
These are employment agencies that match employers to employees to fill permanent positions or vacancies.
Labour Recruitment and Provision of Staff
This category includes personnel search, selection referral and placement in connection with employment supplied to the potential employer or to the prospective employee. The recruiter is also responsible for formulation of job descriptions, screening and testing of applicants, and investigation of references, among other things. This industry also boasts executive search and placement activities (head-hunters).
Personnel Services Agencies
These often include the provision of a suite of personnel related services comprising, recruitment, screening and sometimes training of new employees. Such agencies provide personnel services to organisations that may not have the time nor the resources to fulfil their own staffing requirements.
The firms providing personnel services are also referred to as employment agencies or head-hunters, and range from global franchises to smaller, independent agencies. Some agencies specialise in recruiting temporary personnel for organisations that only require an employee on an interim basis.
Temporary Employment Services
Temporary agencies are employment agencies that find employees to fill short-term duration jobs. Most of the workers employed by Temporary Employment Services fall into the range of sales and service workers, and usually under the youth category.
The Temporary Employment Sector absorbs young people at a far greater rate in the overall labour market than other sectors. Most of the young people employed by Temporary Employment Services are absorbed either in medium or low-skilled occupations.
The Services SETA offers assistance in the training and courses in pursuit of a career in the recruitment services subsector.
- National Certificate: Labour Recruitment Consultancy (NQF Level 4)
- Further Education and Training Certificate: Labour Recruitment Services (NQF Level 4)
- English
- Computer Literacy
Employment Opportunities
- Labour Recruitment Manager
- Labour Recruitment Consultant
- Recruitment Manager
Collective Services
About the Sector
Collective Services is a broad term encompassing services offered by an industry based collective, with or for the benefit of, other industry stakeholders.
The following industries are represented under this subsector:
Bargaining Councils
These organisations facilitate the negotiation process between unified employees (typically trade unions) and employers. A bargaining council must be registered with the Department of Labour and should comprise one or more registered trade unions and one or more registered employer organisations. Their responsibility is to:
- Make and enforce collective agreements.
- Prevent and resolve labour disputes.
- Establish and manage a dispute resolution fund.
- Promote and establish training and education schemes.
- Establish and manage schemes or funds to benefit its parties or members.
- Make and submit proposals on policies and laws that affect a sector or area.
Typically, bargaining councils are mandated to ensure compliance with conditions of employment and dispute resolution within the industries they operate in. As such, practitioners in the industry need to possess comprehensive knowledge and experience with regards to Collective Agreements, Labour Relations Act, Employment Act, and other related legislations. At the same time, they should also be able to provide high levels of customer service and sales aptitude. It is a highly legal environment that requires potential employees to possess diverse skills to make bargaining councils more dynamic. Candidates need to have a post-matric qualification, a passion for working with people and a thorough knowledge of the legal environment.
Associations, Federations, Umbrella Bodies and Professional Bodies
These bodies consist of a group of associated persons who meet from time to time to advance common interests, objectives or profession. There could also be organisations representing interests of special groups or promoting ideas to the general public. These organisations typically have a constituency of members, but their activities may involve and benefit non-members as well.
Collective Services also includes:
- Activities of organisations whose members’ interests centre on the development and prosperity of enterprises in a particular line of business or trade, or on the economic growth and climate of a particular geographical area or political subdivision without regard for the line of business.
- Dissemination of information, representation before government agencies, public relations and labour negotiations of business and employer organisations.
- Activities of associations of specialists engaged in cultural activities, such as associations of writers, painters, performers of various kinds, or journalists, among others.
- Professional Bodies Non-profit organisation aiming to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals engaged in that profession as well as the public interest.
- Activities of professional organisations
- Setting an assessment of professional examinations.
- Providing support for Continuing Professional Development through learning opportunities and tools for recording and planning.
- Publishing of professional journals or magazines.
- Providing networking opportunities for professionals to meet and discuss industry and professional matters.
- Issuing a Code of Conduct to guide professional behaviour.
- Providing professional conduct oversight, monitoring and sanction.
Registered Qualifications
- National Diploma: Labour Relations Practice (NQF Level 5)
- National Certificate: Labour Relations Practice (NQF Level 6)
- English
- Computer Literacy
- Secretary Bargaining Council
- Trade Union Representative
- Workplace/industrial Relations Advisor
- Labour Relations Case Administrator
