Through consensus of IT industry, the Information Technology Association (ITA) as the registered Employers` Association for the IT industry is currently forging ahead with the application for the Statutory Council to the Department of Labour.
Ms Teryl Schroenn, President of the ITA says, that the purpose of this council is to create a united voice representing the Information Technology companies in South Africa, and to take advantage of the benefits that such a council will provide the industry.
The aim of the Statutory Council will be to deal with the controlling of pension and provident funds, training and the Skills Development Act and above all, labour disputes, which will be resolved without going through the CCMA. The establishment of an IT Statutory Council will significantly speed up the process in dispute resolution, says Schroenn.
Schroenn further stated, another major benefit of the Council is that members of the Council appoint the people who will attend to the dispute resolution. The appointments will only be people who completely understand the IT industry and who have a knowledge and understanding of the law.
The costs of establishing the Statutory Council are very high. Until such time as a formal levy system is implemented, a Trust Fund will be established to fund the Council. Two suggested methods of building up this fund have been suggested. The first would be to collect subscriptions from companies on annual basis according to the number of staff employed by each member company.
Alternatively, any members of the ITA who make use of the current Discovery Medical Aid scheme, being offered by the ITA, will not be required to contribute to the establishment of the Council. A portion of the commissions received will be paid into the Trust Fund on their behalf, once the brokerage of their medical aid is signed over to the ITA.
The ITA believes that the process should be finalised by August 2001. Input and commitment from the industry is therefore required as a matter of urgency.
Please contact Sian Hong at the ITA on (011) 789 3805, or sian@ita.org.za or the HRF on (011) 789-9272 for more information.
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