DRAFT

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Labour on the oversight visit to Labour Centres in the Provinces from 17 – 21 May 2010

1. Background

In the 2010 State of the Nation Address (SONA), the President announced that the current government administration should understand and be responsive to people’s needs. In so doing, it should work faster, harder and smarter. In response to the President’s call, the Department of Labour (DoL), in its 2010 Strategic Plan introduced the service delivery improvement programme highlighting specific areas of improvement and introducing various service delivery systems which are meant to address challenges with the hope of increasing the rate and quality of services and labour market information.

As a result, the Portfolio Committee on Labour undertook to conduct an oversight visit to four Provinces, namely: North West, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Gauteng, with the intention of overseeing service provision through the Department of Labour’s labour centres and tusong centres.

1.1. Objectives

The Portfolio Committee on Labour took a decision to undertake an oversight visit to the above-mentioned four Provinces to assess the work of the DoL against priorities as set in the strategic plan of 2010 -2015. The strategic plan includes:

Assessing if the Department has been able to reposition the Head Office, the provincial offices and labour centers for improved and effective service delivery
Evaluating if the Department has empowered its access points staff in delivering the entire suite of the DoL’s services and information inclusive of employment services, social security and labour protection service
Evaluate if mechanisms have been put in place by the Department in order to improve access to services and information and in addition to access if the Department has integrated service delivery centres close to the people and put in place multiple access channels across the country
Assess if both the Employment Services System and the Inspectorate Enforcement Case Management System has been enhanced in order to respond to clients’ needs and expectations for access to services and information
Assessing if measures have been put in place to encourage continuous learning and improvement, and innovation by those serving at the point of contact with the client

1.2. Delegation

The delegation of the committee composed of Ms L E Yengeni, ANC (Chairperson and Leader of the delegation), Ms A M Rantsolase, ANC, Ms A N Mnisi, ANC, Mr E Nyekemba, ANC, Ms L S Makhubela-Mashele, ANC, Ms D Tsotetsi, ANC, Ms F Khumalo, ANC, Mr I Ollis, DA, Mr A Louw, DA and Mr V Ndlovu, IFP. Ms A Kakaza, Acting Committee Secretary, Ms S Mkhize, Committee Researcher and Ms N Myovu, Committee Assistant.

2. Findings

2.1 Rustenburg Labour Centre

The Committee visited this office which deals mostly with UIF claims and the following challenges were observed:

Upon arrival members of the committee were greeted by long ques mostly UIF applicants
Clients did not receive any assistance from the official
People were being sent from pillar to post
No assistance was given to those clients who cannot read or write instead they were sent back
Number of UIF beneficiaries complained of not receiving their benefits for over two months
The building or offices in the building were not accessible

However the Management and officials of the centre were of the opinion that the problems identified emanate from the following challenges that make it difficult for them to do their job efficiently and effectively:

Not enough office space, due to small office space clients have to stand in long ques waiting for services and according to the officials of the center alternative accommodation was identified seven years ago but nothing has been done.
The labour centre offices are not accessible to old and disabled people as it is allocated on the first floor of the building
Operational design is centralised and as s result much minor decisions such as the buying of stationery have to be approved by the Provincial Office
Human Resource was also identified as a challenge. There is a shortage of staff especially on the front desk
Computer system was also identified as one of the challenges

After meeting with the management of the centre the committee noted that:

The Rustenburg Labour Centre faces numerous structural challenges due to the policy design guiding operational procedures. Such policies do not take cognisance of the expanded services that labour centres have to deliver due to the decentralisation of functions from the Head Office and provincial offices. Whilst Labour Centre responsibilities have been expanded, the roles of managers have not been reviewed to empower them with necessary authority to implement their new delegated functions.

When registering for the Unemployment Insurance benefits, claimants have to automatically register with the Employment Services System (ESSA) as work-seekers. Whereas the intention was to improve coordination and efficiency of services provision, the system has led to slow registration process leading to long queues.

2.2 Britz Labour Centre

These were challenges observed by the members of the committee upon arrival in the centre:

The issue of long ques was also a challenge in the centre
Shortage of human resource including computer was also identified
Most of claims were about companies who do not pay the workers
Some clients were complaining that they have been coming back to the centre for the 15^th time for the same application
General shortage of vehicles, as inspectors and staff members have to alternate using the three available cars amongst eleven inspectors and two remaining cars for the rest of the staff
Due to the increasing demand for service provided by the labour centre which resulted to increase in the number of clients the office accommodation became a challenge
The labour centre does not have any security
The officials were not wearing their name tags in order for the public to identify them easily
Notice boards were written in English, no interpretation in the language that the majority of the clients understand
The ESSA system experiences systemic challenges and is still not fully utilised by the employers who should register vacancies and access the data base when recruiting prospective employees.

Management of the centre in the meeting with the members of the Committee also raised the issue of office space, shortage of staff, the computer system which was very slow and lack of enforcement from the companies which resulted in the delays on the processing and payments of claims.

The committee noted that;

The frontline staff members were not properly monitored to ensure that they provide client-friendly services. People spend numerous hours in queues without being attended to, only to be turned back for minor queries that could have been spotted if there had been floor managers attending to the people.
The UIF processing system, i.e. the labour centres processing the manual data and the provincial offices processing the computerised data and the payment process, delay service provision as data gets lost therefore people are sent from pillar to post
The toilet facilities were not well maintained and out of order. The manager should fast track the process of maintaining the toilet facilities
Whilst there was visible signage that displays information on various services provided by the centre, it did not cater for the indigenous language users.

2.3 KwaMhlushwa Labour Centre

The labour centre mainly services the remote rural area, ideally applying the principle of taking the services closer to the people. The following were committee observations on arrival:

The office is situated next to the shebeen which is not conducive at all for both the clients and officials
Resources like computers and switch board facilities were in a very bad situation
Office space problem was identified as clients had to que outside the building
Notifications were not written in a language that clients would understand
Officials were not identifiable, not wearing their name tags
Clients were complaining about their forms being misplaced by the officials
No pre-screening in the ques, resulting in clients queing not knowing whether all the documents provided are correct
Staff shortage, as a result there are constant backlog in claims not captured
The general environmental hygiene does not promote healthy working conditions, for example there is no permanent cleaner in the centre, no fire extinguish in the building, there is one toilet shared between staff and clients and there are instances where there is no running water
Telephones were old and the switchboard was outdated and therefore regularly out of order

However the Management of the centre when meeting with committee members identified the following challenges that were hampering the centre not to deliver effectively:

That the previous Director-General knew about the situation in this centre but up to date nothing has been done
The centre had also a problem of shortage of staff, which resulted in cancellation of the mobile labour centre
The office was supposed to capture applications and make payments, but due to shortage of staff it only captures and send the application to the Provincial Office for payment
Office space is a problem which results in clients queing outside the building
There were constant IT challenges which take long time to be fixed. This affects the Employment Services System (ESSA) programme performance as it relies on computer data capturing. There is one Siemens person based in Witbank assigned to repairs and programme computers, in addition IT contactors are reluctant to drive long distances to rural areas such as KwaMhlushwa office
The DoL introduced sophisticated programme such as ESSA whereas the IT software does not match the required tasks
Law Enforcement Inspectors do not have equipments such as laptops in order for them to do their job as most of the time they are working outside the office
There was a shortage of vehicles for inspectors

However, the committee noted the following:

The general state of the office is unpleasant due to unhygienic and muddled conditions that workers and clients are exposed to daily.

The committee acknowledged the urgency for the Department to sort the conditions of the offices, however felt that the manager and the staff had not taken any initiative to improve the conditions in the offices, such as littering on the floor, files clumsily placed on the floor, including confidential client information.

2.4 Nelspruit Provincial Office

On arrival, the Committee recorded the following complains after interacted with clients in the Nelspruit Provincial Office:

· No preference given to pregnant women or old people

· The clients were complaining that the service was too slow, they have to wait in the que for a long time

In the meeting with Management of the centre the following challenges were identified in dealing with their day-to-day functioning.

Long queues as a result of insufficient accommodation.
As a result of the lack of facilities in the part-time offices, the staff has to travel to the office to perform data capturing
Due to the inherent systemic bureaucracy within the DoL, the regional offices are caught in the red tape processes, causing unnecessary delays to services.

2.5 Polokwane Labour Centre

The following were the challenges reported by the officials of the centre:

Demand for services has increased as a result of the decentralisation process. Although the demand has increased, the number of staff members has not increased.
Inspectors continue to find it difficult to access farms due to non-cooperation from farm owners.
Increase in non-compliance to minimum wage payments due to the growing number of people who are unemployed and living in poverty.
Shortage of inspection vehicles. As a result, the DoL through the 2010/11 budget will hire vehicles for the inspectorate service.
Increasing non-compliance to general basic working conditions from the immigrant employers. In response, the DoL and the Department of Home Affairs will conduct joint inspections in the province in order to assess and enforce compliance

2.6 Pretoria Labour Centre

According to the labour centre manager, the following challenges were identified:

There’s general non-compliance by employers with regards to the filling of the UIF declaration forms (UI-19).
Prevalence of labour broking activities within the cleaning and security sector, which undermines adherence to basic conditions of employment for workers.
Increasing number of retrenched job-seekers as a result of the economic recession.
Employers are not forthcoming in registering for the ESSA services.
Employers take advantage of statutory limitations, therefore not comply with legislative requirements.
Inspectors find it difficult to access private premises in order to enforce compliance within the domestic sector.
Rural residents travel to the city labour centre, avoiding their local labour centres due to the perception that urban-based centres process claims quicker. As a result of this influx, the centre has constant long queues.

However, these were the concerns raised by the committee members on site:

Members received complaints from clients of unanswered switchboard calls. In response, it was answered that there is technical fault with the switchboard line which has been referred to the management support unit
All written communication, including posters or notices around the office, was in English. Therefore not acknowledging the illiterate non-English speakers
The Members were briefed of the impending disciplinary case of one staff member. According to the labour centre manager, the provincial office is handling the matter which has already commenced in January 2010. Concerns about the disciplinary hearing delays were also raised by Members, as the hearing was initiated in June 2009, but not completed in almost a year.

2.7 Compensation Fund’s Offices (CF)

These were concerns raised by the members of the portfolio committee regarding CF services:

Whereas the majority of people interviewed by the Members praised the manner in which the CF services the public, there were criticisms about continuous long queues.
Others complained about being sent from pillar to post, with the labour centres not disseminating accurate information such as which forms people should bring when applying for CF benefits
Others complained about the lengthy periods they had to wait for their benefits. One such example is the man who alleged to have been waiting for over 5 years for his benefits from the Fund.

The CFO of the Fund reiterated that some of the challenges are exacerbated by the high turnover amongst the casual staff. This affects the skills retention for labour centres.

2.7 The Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA)

The Johannesburg CCMA office is the biggest and seemingly the busiest in the country. It is also the biggest resolution centre in the world. According to the Senior Convenor Commissioner, Bheki Khumalo, the office receives more or less 3 000 cases per month. As a result the workload piles up and become too much to handle. Currently, there are 100 part-time commissioners, 30 full-time commissioners and close to 50 part-time interpreters.

Due to the large number of staff being part-time, it is quite difficult to establish and instil a strict organisational culture of discipline and certain values, such as the Batho Pele (People First) values. However, the Members also appreciated the hard work and dedication of certain staff members who resumed work well before time and were hospitable to both the members and the general members of the public, for example the receptionist.

Numerous cases are postponed due to non-availability of employers and due to commissioners who view this as a money-making scheme, since commissioners are paid per session they hold.

Challenges of employers who do not honour the settlement agreements. As a result, the vulnerable workers struggle to enforce the agreements as such actions require more funds to pay the Sheriff of the Court. Individual workers, who do not fall under the trade union, end up paying close to R2 000 for the enforcement.

The Johannesburg CCMA office has been said to be the worst performing centre. As a result, the management has embarked on the turnaround strategy which includes designing permanent organisational structures to support administrative functions regardless who the individual manager is.

In order to fast-track the case management process, each Commissioner will have a number of specifically dedicated cases to manage. This is a move away from the past practice where cases did not have dedicated commissioners, resulting in the lengthy case management processes.

There are instances whereby commissioners deliberately delay cases where they have conflict of interest. There is currently such a case with one commissioner going through the disciplinary process.

However, members of the committee were concerned about Labour Courts being taken over by the Department of Justice. The concern was what is going to happen to issues of labour enforcement laws which have been channel through labour courts.

3. Conclusion

Members of the Committee having interacted with the people from the different labour centres recognised that service delivery is still lacking in some of the centres and what the National Department says is different from what the Members saw during the visit.

Whilst some labour centers have improved service delivery system, others continue to struggle due to non-empowerment of staff members to deliver on the entire suite of the Department of Labour’s services. Due to not understanding these services, the ill-informed staff members give wrong information to clients. As a result, people continuously travel back and forth the labour centres.

Due to the weaknesses in the IT system, some labour centers struggle to fully implement the Employment Services System, especially those located in the rural areas.

The optimal conceptual framework of the Employment Services System requires a full structural support, such as fully furnished spacious offices where people can fill forms without compromising their privacy. However, this systemic support for the ESSA has not yet been achieved in the labour centers.

The Department’s decentralisation process has overstretched the labour centre functions, but failed to empower the labour centre managers in order to enable them to make swift administrative decisions. As a result, the labour centers cannot address minor challenges due to red-tape

Without underestimating the challenges identified in the urban based labour centers, the resource support appears to be biased towards them as opposed to the rural labour centers. As a result, the majority of rural based people travel to the urban areas in search of better services, therefore leading to long queues and deterioration of services provided as a result of overburdened infrastructure

There is general non-compliance with regard to the Unemployment Insurance Act, as commercial employers do not declare relevant information in order for employees to collect their benefits. As a result, claimants spent lengthy periods without receiving their benefits.

4. Recommendations

The Department of Labour should address the situation in KwaMhlushwa Labour Centre as the Office was a disaster.

There should be more personnel employed in the Labour centres, in order to curb long ques which are of great concern to Government.

The Department should look at the Siemens contract as it had come up clearly in most centres that there was a problem with IT services.

The Department should consider having more mobile centres especially in rural areas in order to bring the service closer to the people.

In instances where office accommodation is a challenge, the Minister of Labour should approach the Minister of Public Works to address and fast –track the issue of proper offices and facilities in the labour centres.

The Department should address those challenges that can be resolved in the short term by the labour centres, such as the assignment of the floor manager to guide and assist people, given that the majority of service users are illiterate, old and disabled. In addition, the floor manager would have to ensure that the vulnerable groups including the old, disabled people and pregnant women are prioritised using the “express queues”.

The floor manager should be multi-lingual in order to accommodate all people who use the labour centre services.

The Department should respond to all the recommendations in this report and report back to the Committee within 30 days after adoption of the report by the House.

Report to be considered