[Listen] SEIFSA Senior Economist featured on the Moneyweb's Money Talk Show about a 3% decline in demand for steel and impact
Three percent decline in the metals and engineering sector
Tafadzwa Chibanguza, SEIFSA Senior Economist, featured on the Moneyweb's Money Talk Show on Radio 2000 with Tumisang Ndlovu in which he illustrates the challenges of the 3% decline in the demand for steel products. Listen below.
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Tuesday, 27 December 2016 proclaimed as a public holiday
TUESDAY, 27 DECEMBER 2016 PROCLAIMED AS A PUBLIC HOLIDAY
Dear Member
Please click here for a communique in which President Jacob Zuma has declared Tuesday, 27 December 2016 a Public Holiday, throughout the Republic of South Africa.
Alliance Partners
| Company | Scope | Name | Email Address | Telephone | |
| Cato & Associates | SDF Services | Cobus Cato | catosdfservices@gmail.com | 072 910 9999 | |
| Emergence Human Capital | HR Assistance | Raun Smythe | rauns@emergencegrowth.com | 011 026 3442 / 082 442 8686 | |
| Honeycomb BEE Ratings | BBBEE | Greg Mitchell | greg@honeycomb-bee.co.za | 011 880 1630 / 083 401 6070 | |
| Juliana Makapan | HR Assistance | Juliana Makapan | Julianam@telkomsa.net | 0825571863 | |
| Dibata Corporate Governance | HR Assistance | Mathetha Swafo | matheta@me.com | 0722681214 | |
| Prose And Coms | Soft Skills | Susan Williams | susan@prosecoms.co.za | 011 476 7403 | |
| Thuthukisa Talent Relations | Integrated HR Solutions | Preggy Chetty | preggychetty@outlook.com | 011 825 0647 / 082 389 2363 | |
SEIFSA WELCOMES FINANCE MINISTER’S FISCAL PRUDENCE, BUT FEELS THAT IT IS NOT SUFFICIENT
SEIFSA’s Chief Economist Henk Langenhoven said while fiscal consolidation should continue, nevertheless all other necessary steps will have to be taken to engineer the changes that South Africa needs for longer-term growth and prosperity.” He said that Minister Gordhan’s budget speech was so important that without the financial data contained it, it could have been the state-of-the nation address delivered by the President in February.
Mr Langenhoven said that the words chosen by Minister Gordhan for his speech yesterday were indicative of a turning point that needed immediate change.
Mr Langenhoven commended Mr Gordhan for an accurate description of the low point in domestic economic growth and the tough and very competitive international markets, and for his prognosis of our dilemma. He said that it was unfortunate that despite all these changes, South Africa’s structural reforms and policy responses have been sluggish, with economic growth remaining below expectations.
Mr Langenhoven said that he believed that the Minister had probably done enough to dissuade international ratings agencies from downgrading the country’s credit rating. He cautioned that if fiscal policy is too restrictive, it may constrain domestic expenditure and, consequently, growth in the economy.
“The one overwhelming concern is that total demand in the economy, whether from domestic customers or international markets, has not improved and, according to his own analysis, will be gaining momentum very slowly. A real concern is that the right balance might not have been struck; only time will tell though,” said Mr Langenhoven.
Mr Langenhoven said that the Minister had tried very hard to show that investment spending by general government and State-owned enterprises will continue as planned, with some acceleration here and there.
“This emphasis is again aimed at not detracting from spending in the economy. The proof will lie in action plans since so many companies are reporting substantial cutbacks in spending by these entities,” he said.
Legal Services Retainer Package
SEIFSA Legal now offers a retainer package that ensures our clients are well armed to minimise risk and conflict that can lead to litigation, or worse. Our objective is to become an integral part of our clients’ teams, which is essential to your strategic success.
How does a retainer package benefit my company/organisation?
- It is a pro-active approach, therefore exposure to unnecessary legal fees is avoided
- It allows the company to more accurately budget for legal expenses
- It helps lessen the amount of legal fees by paying on a monthly basis instead of paying for legal assistance on an hourly basis
- The peace of mind of knowing we are only a phone call away
The retainer includes 12 hours per month for 12 months or 5 hours per month for 6 months.
Services include:
- Chairing disciplinary hearings
- Unlimited legal advice
- Preparation for arbitrations
- Drafting of contracts
- Interlocutory applications before the CCMA and MEIBC
- Discounted rates for Legal representation
Standard Retainer:
- The standard retainer agreement is available to clients at a fee of R8 000.00 per month for 6 months
- and R6 500.00 per month for a 12 month agreement.
Special offer:
If you sign up for the 12 months retainer package before the 31 January 2016, your organisation will enjoy all the services of the standard retainer PLUS the following:
- 1x Labour court litigation (action or application proceedings)
- Unlimited representation at the MEIBC (For the duration of your retainer)
- 50% discount on all unsettled disputes
If you sign up for the 6 months retainer package before the above stipulated date, you pay R1 000.00 less per month i.e. ONLY R7000.00 per month.
For more information, please contact:
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Bridgette Mokoetle
Legal Executive & Company Secretary
Direct: 011 298 9413
E-mail: bridgette@seifsa.co.za
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Thandi Malele
Legal Officer
Direct: 011 298 9452
E-mail: thandi@seifsa.co.za
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Industrial Relations Retainer Package
SEIFSA’s Industrial Relations division has introduced a comprehensive industrial relations management retainer service.
The service includes the following:
- All aspects of industrial relations management up to and including the convening of grievance, disciplinary and appeal hearings, meetings with unions and shop stewards and the attending of conciliations at the CCMA / MEIBC CDR
- Charing of various shop steward committee meetings and assisting in management and elected committees, the compilation and submission of the Employment Equity Act EEA 2 and EEA 4 Report forms
The cost of the service to member companies is R3300.00 (incl.VAT) per month for the first eight hours of the service with any additional hours thereafter billed at the standard SEIFSA member billing rate of R599.00 (inc. VAT) per hour.
Terms and Conditions
The duration of this agreement will be for a minimum period of 12 months.
SEIFSA undertakes to review the agreement with the member annually thereafter.
The retainer package does not include:
- Representation at arbitration and Labour Court proceedings. Representation by a SEIFSA Industrial Relations consultant at arbitration proceedings will be at the standard SEIFSA billing rate
IR & Legal Services Consultancy
SEIFSA IR Services’ qualified and experienced staff offer a legal service to companies that encompasses consultancy on all industrial relations and labour legislation issues, including the resolution of company-level disputes over allegations of unfair dismissals, unfair retrenchments and unfair labour practices.
Let our team of professional industry experts assist you in:
- Preparing all necessary documentation
- Preparing witnesses for evidence and cross-examination
- Presenting the company's case to the arbitrator or in court
- Processing the bargaining council's exemption applications
Our staff maintains a high rate of dispute resolution through the bargaining council's dispute resolution centre, protecting member companies from industrial action and costly litigation.
In a nutshell, our service embraces:
- Advice on general industrial relations and legal issues
- Interpretation and advice on labour laws
- Interpretation and implementation of the bargaining council agreements
- Formulation and implementation of company-level industrial relations policy documents and procedures
- Assistance in bargaining council and CCMA dispute resolution processes
- Formulation and processing of bargaining council exemption applications
- Representation at arbitration hearings and at the Labour Court
- Grading of industry employees
- Assistance in formulating employment equity plans and reports
- The chairing of company-level disciplinary enquiries
RATES
Members: R 599.00 (incl. VAT)
Non-Members: R 900.00 (incl. VAT)
Job Grading
The primary objective of job classification is to accurately define and describe the current duties and responsibilities of jobs for purposes of:
- Determining compensation levels and competency requirements.
- Identifying career ladders and promotional lines.
- Translating broad company plans into the assignment of duties and responsibilities to individual jobs (job descriptions).
The classification of work is fundamental to any HR management system. In large and complex companies, both public and private, it provides a means of grouping similar types of work together so that they can be ranked by levels of difficulty and differentiated from other work.
Factors that are considered include such elements as the:
- Nature, scope and level of the duties and responsibilities
- Relationship of the job to other jobs in the department
- Supervision given or received
- Exercise of independent judgment
Impact of the work performed to the organisation – both of scope and duration
Classification is based upon the objective elements of a job and does not consider the status of an incumbent. Typically, the employee’s length of service, time spent at the maximum salary level of the job, or the quality of performance is therefore not considered in determining the appropriate classification of a job.
When the work is properly defined and classified, managers are able to determine the skills needed to perform the work.
Grouping similar work and the employees who do that work, provides unions and the employer with a practical means of collectively bargaining appropriate employee wages and terms and conditions of employment.
Alignment of the work and the skills required to perform it is essential for the effective:
- Recruitment
- Selection
- Retention
- Professional development of employees.
Job classification for scheduled jobs in the metal and engineering Industry is done according to the Main Agreement where the current 13 grade structure is still applicable.
Contract Price Adjustment
Contract Price Adjustment
Most companies in the industry don’t sell directly to consumers but to national, provincial or local governments, parastatals, private corporations or other companies in the industry requiring inputs for their own production. Lead times between tender, order and delivery can be considerable – often a year or more.
Therefore, it is important, especially in times of high inflation, for tendering companies to have a way of adjusting their contract prices to compensate unforeseen cost increases during the period between tender and delivery.
The division consults on CPA formulas and escalation calculations which allows tenderers to adjust delivery prices in line with unforeseen cost increases. This SEIFSA service assists companies to conclude contracts that allow for price adjustment provisions that are fair and equitable to both parties. The value of this service to companies is in excess of R7 billion a year in escalation claims on contracts.
The monthly SEIFSA Price and Index Pages publishes 140 indices that measure changes in the costs of manufacturing inputs in the industry. By including data from these indices in a Contract Price Adjustment (CPA) formula, a company can calculate the average changes in costs of labour, steel, transport and other inputs affecting the final cost of manufacture.
The division regularly reviews the make-up of the various indices generated by SEIFSA in order to ensure that they remain relevant and accurate.
The titles in the series of CPA handbooks, published by EC Services, are Theory of Price Adjustment, Price Adjustment Calculations and Price Adjustment in Practice.
Recognised as the experts on CPA, the division holds regular practical workshops on price adjustment provisions countrywide.
SEIFSA Senior Economist, Tafadzwa Chibanguza
Watch SEIFSA Senior Economist, Tafadzwa Chibanguza, discuss the warning announcement by S&P about a possible downgrade of the local economy to junk status and the impact around such.