The Committee of Labour has emphasised to the Department of Labour (DoL) and the entities it administers the importance of relying less on paper – and embracing technology.
The call follows a presentation from the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), the Compensation Fund, and the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac), which all indicated they were moving towards the digitisation of their systems.
Committee member Mr Ian Ollis said it was common to find piles of paper at many DoL centres.
“If you leave the head office and go to any of the DoL centres you will find piles of paper that must still be taken to a regional office. This duplicates itself throughout the country, especially at local branch levels. What is the plan, are we getting scans to do away with this paper?” he asked.
Mr Ollis said this was his experience at the Wynberg (Cape Town) Labour Centre and that it was easy to lose papers and that such occurrences delay the services being provided to the people.
The Chairperson of the Committee, Ms Lumka Yengeni, concurred and said the general public holds the view that paper was being wasted at DoL offices. She said she accepted the explanation that currently one could find processed files lying around as opposed to just papers.
The Director-General of the Department, Mr Thobile Lamani, said the department was making progress towards a paperless environment.
“We are automating everything and in future we will not have to send any papers,” he said. The Commissioner for the CCMA, Mr Sello Morajane, said the entity was prioritising the digitisation of its systems as contained in CCMA Director’s 10-Point Plan, the annual performance plan and the strategic plan.
“The digitisation will see the CCMA saving a lot of money on travelling and associated logistics will not be necessary. The result will be the saving of resources that are also channelled to other programmes of the entity,” he said.
He told the Committee that the volatility of the labour market threatens an increase in the case load that the CCMA deals with and that workplace mediation, if successful, is ideal to counter such increases. He said bargaining councils were efficient.
Commissioner Morajane also said there were gaps in legislation that needed to be addressed, especially with regard to intervening before employees are fired.
Members sought clarity on such issues as assets, whether there were lease contracts that are likely to have an impact on the budget, and the case loads.
Mr Morajane indicated that there were no issues with rental lease contracts except the Western Cape office, but that he did not have details of the issue.
Ms Yengeni said the meeting was fruitful and that the proactive stance being adopted by the CCMA was appreciated. She said the Committee hoped that what is contained in the plans would be realised.
Budget reviews continue on Thursday with other entities administered by the department.
By Sibongile Maputi
3 May 2017
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