The Intsimbi National Tooling Initiative continues to partner with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Toolmaking Association of South Africa to provide workplace learning for students that wish to pursue a career in the manufacturing industry.

To date, over a period of four years, companies in the manufacturing industry have provided more than 740 000 hours of on-the-job training to students as part of the tooling initiative’s Tool, Die and Mould Making Powered Programme. Added to this, companies also provided about 330 000 hours of mentorship to students over this period, which translates to a rate of between R300/h and R500/h for each mentor. This amounts to an industry contribution of more than R30-million.

“The students are provided with on-the-job training; supplier support through substantial discounts on materials, software, machining and teacher training; and strategic support by senior industry members on national tooling indus-try activities,” says Intsimbi National Tooling Initiative CEO Dirk van Dyk.

He highlights that through the DTI, govern- ment has shown its commitment to working with the manufacturing industry to enhance employ-ment opportunities and skills development for all workers, especially youth, who struggle with limited experience.

“On-the-job experience is crucial for attaining the appropriate skills and for future employment prospects,” Van Dyk points out.

In an effort to reduce the high rate of unemploy-ment in the country, government introduced the Employment Tax Incentive Act, commonly known as the Youth Wage Subsidy in January this year.

The Act functions by decreasing the amount of pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) tax that is payable to the South African Revenue Service (Sars) for every qualifying employee that is hired by the employer. The incentive is available to all private-sector employers in all sectors of the economy registered with Sars for PAYE.

Employers hiring young workers in designated economic zones will receive a tax incentive for about two years under certain conditions, such as the age of the employee.

“An employee’s age must be determined at the end of each month for which the Employment Tax Incentive is being claimed. “An employee will start to qualify in the month that they turn 18 and will end in the month they turn 30,” explains Van Dyk.