EOH Work Readiness Initiative - Narrative Reports 2014 - 2015 Aug. 2014 | Page 36

WORK READINESS INITIATIVE UNDER DIGITAL JOBS FOR AFRICA

RAMADIMETSE MAKGATI (MENTOR)
Ramadimetse is an IT Technician at the Department of
Public Works. She is mentoring two learners (Rofhiwa
Tshautshau and Walton Blok)26.
“When they first got here they didn’t know anything.
They learned and were dedicated and now they are
good. Confidence was an issue when they first got
here but now it is building up. I enjoy being a mentor. I
enjoy “being a boss” [laughs]. They help [me] a lot. Now
they know everything I am doing so my workload has
decreased.”
Would you recommend mentoring to other people in the
workplace?
“I would do. As for feeling, knowing that you have helped
these people who didn’t know anything.”

VERONICA MOROTOBA (MENTOR)
Veronica is also an IT Technician and is mentoring
Mavis Ramohlale and Mampho (Patricia) Mosikidi. Both
learners were interviewed for this report. Mavis’ interview
appears in the report.
How are you finding the mentoring experience?
“At first it wasn’t easy due to the fact that the learners
were not familiar with the work environment. But as time
went on everything was perfectly fine. Now I can even
relax and send them to do my task. They can be able to
do that on their own.

their learnership and internship programmes, their
management trainees, and their young professionals or
candidacy programme.
They also implement the internally executed projects,
such as a call centre operation, and the certification of
internal auditors who already have some professional
qualification. The call centre operation which was
previously outsourced but has now been taken on as an
internal project. It sits with her directorate because it has
a youth development element. Her directorate also has a
water treatment project which is responsible for providing
accommodation and sanitation on behalf of other
government departments, especially in areas outside of
municipalities.
They run several on-the-job training programmes through
the Department of Higher Education & Training and
Sector Education & Training Authorities (SETAs). They
have just over 400 technical college27 students in these
programmes, as college students often miss out on
work experience and bursary opportunities available for
university or SETA students.
They also have a schools programme for Grade 10
- 12 high performing Maths & Science students from
disadvantaged areas. These students are offered
bursaries for careers in the built environment after they
complete their schooling.
In total there are more than 500 learners in the
organisation. Government has mandated that its
departments should appoint up to 5% of their workforce
as trainees.

What did you have to do to get them to the place where
they can now do your work?

How important is work readiness for the learners you are
dealing with here?

“It involved commitment from them and from me, and to
show me that they are willing to learn and to work.”

“It is very important to have a work readiness workshop
for the learners, especially the ones just coming straight
from [studying]. It might be a person who is having a
grade 12, or a person who is having a diploma or a
certificate or a degree. We want to install principles
in them. Time management, financial management,
responsibility and accountability.

What would you say to other people who are busy
working and have an opportunity to mentor? Would you
recommend it as an experience or would you tell them its
a tough job, don’t go there?
“No I would recommend them to mentor interns, even
if they are not exposed to a work environment. In fact
I think its better if they have not been exposed at all.
It kind of shows how good you are as a mentor if I
taught somebody who is clueless and then that person
becomes a technician. I am very proud of myself with
them.
Keep on bringing them. We are ready for them. We will
teach them everything we know.”

VUYO SIBEKO (MANAGER)
Vuyo is an Assistant Director at Department of Public
Works (DPW) in their Human Capital Investment
directorate. DPW employs approximately 6,000 people.
It is responsible for managing the implementation of

26 Both learners were interviewed for this report. Rofhiwa’s interview appears
in this report.

36

In terms of impact on the country, the community, the
families, is there anything you can tell us as to how
effective these kind of programmes are?
“Some of their parents are not working, or a person is
raised by a single parent. We normally come across
cases like those. In one of our [other projects] we had
146 grade 12 st