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Hisense boosts its training initiatives


Cape Town, 26 Nov 2015

As important as creating employment is, so is the upskilling and training of employees. While this is true for established employees, it is particularly pertinent for those companies, such as Hisense, which have committed themselves to enabling previously unemployed persons to gain the requisite skills to join the workforce.

With this in mind, Hisense has reported that its skills development programme, which began in September and will run until March 2016, is on track and in full operation. Even though the current programme is now on its final lap, Hisense's commitment to training new employees doesn't end there. Once this is concluded, a new workplace skills planning (WSP) programme will be submitted to skills education training authority MerSETA by the end of April, and following this, will begin in May 2016.

Stepping into the breach to provide the training is Plastics SA, an accredited training provider, registered with the MerSETA. This enabled Hisense to qualify for both mandatory and discretionary grants. While mandatory grants are smaller monthly grants, the discretionary grant is the larger one, but this is subject to an audit which is currently under way.

Counting in Plastics SA's favour is that it offers a strong and diverse line-up of learning/skills programmes ranging from skills that don't fit into the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) qualifications all the way up to NQF Level 4 and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) assessment on NQF Level 5. These courses span the gamut from thermoplastic welding (butt, hot air, electrofusion welding) and principles of quality (NQF level 2), up to the fabrication of polymer composite parts and manufacturing and assembly operations supervision (NQF Level 4). Plastics SA was also able to source courses it did not facilitate, as per Hisense's needs.

Thus, as of the end of October, 90 personnel have been sent on courses so far. The majority of them, at 62 people, have been enrolled in the two-day "Effective Workday Performance" course, while 10 have completed "Principles of Quality", and 11 were sent on the "Manufacturing and Assembly Operations Supervision Skills Programme". The "Operations Supervision" courses entail effective planning, communication, workplace calculations, effective workplace performance and industrial relations. The courses, particularly those which focus on skills development, can lead to a Further Education and Training (FET) Certificate, which is an NQF Level 4 qualification.

The report back from Hisense staff has been encouraging, with the company reporting good results thus far. Comments from the participants included that they were happy with the training and were looking forward to completing more training in the future. Also noted was the cost involved in studying privately, and thus appreciation for Hisense's willingness to invest in its staff.

Hisense's commitment to training up its new staff did not come about by accident, but rather as a response to a pressing need in the community in which Hisense operates, which came to the fore two-and-a-half years ago. In June 2013, under the support of local government and the China-Africa Development Fund, its manufacturing plant in Atlantis, 30km outside Cape Town, was opened with the decision to create jobs for 500 previously unemployed locals. The area is beset with socio-economic challenges, most notably a 55% unemployment rate. The establishment of employment created by the factory had a wide-reaching positive impact on employees and their families. To date, the job opportunities created has surpassed the original 500 new jobs mark.

In order to effectively run the factory, experienced engineers from Hisense's global headquarters in Qingdao were brought on board to train the local staff. In order to continually meet Hisense's high quality standards, the company remains committed to continual learning and training of staff.

"Training and upskilling our employees is of paramount importance. We don't just want to create employment in the region in which we operate, we also want to ensure our people have valuable skills and experience with which to better their lives moving forwards," concludes Hisense Human Capital Development Manager, Mark Dammert.

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Hisense

Hisense is a world-leading multinational that provides innovative, competitive and best-in-class consumer electronics and appliances around the globe. With a workforce of over 75 000 worldwide, Hisense continues to pursue growth in the multimedia, household appliance, mobile communications, and IT industries in over 130 countries. Hisense has production facilities in China, South Africa, Algeria, Egypt as well as Mexico, and is one of the largest television manufacturers in the world with over 10 million televisions produced each year. The company has been the recipient of several recognitions and awards in the name of innovation, technology, design, and quality management. The company entered the South African market in 1996 and is based in Woodmead, Johannesburg, and in Century City, Cape Town. Visit www.hisense.co.za for more information.

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