Toilets in the Townships
Sanitation in townships is a big problem in South Africa.
And perhaps we should follow the lead of the Sanergy group:
“The Problem
2.6 billion people do not have access to adequate sanitation. The resulting disease &water pollution cause 1.7 million deaths & loss of $84 billion in worker productivity each year. In Kenya’s slums, 8 million people lack access to adequate sanitation.
The Solution
The long term objective is to build and scale viable sanitation infrastructure in the slums of Nairobi. The model involves four parts: (i) building a network of low-cost sanitation centers in slums, (ii) distributing them through franchising to local entrepreneurs, (iii) collecting the waste produced, and (iv) processing it into electricity and fertilizer. At each step, this model creates jobs and opportunity while simultaneously addressing serious social needs.”
Check out the video!
http://saner.gy/ourapproach/
Russian ATM with a lie-detector
As more and more security measures are being brought in to make internet banking securer than ever before, it was only a matter of time before we saw similar precautions introduced at ATM machines. Now, Moscow-based Sberbank has developed a banking machine that can tell when a patron is lying.
Designed to help combat consumer credit fraud, Sberbank’s new ATM features voice-analysis technology developed by the Speech Technology Center, a Russian firm that also serves the Russian Federal Security Service, according to a report in the New York Times. Credit card applications for brand-new customers can reportedly be handled through the device, which will ask — and analyze the veracity of answers to — questions including, “Are you employed?” and “At this moment, do you have any other outstanding loans?” As part of the application process, the ATM will also scan the applicant’s passport, record fingerprints and take a 3D scan for facial recognition. To comply with privacy laws, the bank will reportedly store customers’ voice prints on chips contained in their own credit cards rather than on its servers.
Though the new ATM design is still in the prototype stages, Sberbank plans to install such machines in malls and bank branches around the country, the NYT reports. Financial institutions elsewhere in the world: time to think about introducing something similar?
quoted from www.springwise.comBlue Sticker’s Domestic Worker Training a great success!
This month’s Blue Sticker Household Domestic Training course has been running successfully for the past two weeks and I’d like to update everyone on the progress we’ve made.
We dealt with employer/employee rights in the first module of session 1 – which provided a good platform to explain to the ladies how the employer is allowed to react when they do not fulfill their contracts (be it a verbal or written contract). Many of the ladies on the course had been sent by their employers simply because they were not fulfilling their contractual obligations, and needed to be spoken to and counselled into a proper service attitude. Other ladies had come because of their good attitudes and hunger to learn. Either way, the mornings work-shopping was helpful all around, with both groups seeing that attitude and performance play a vital role in their work experiences.
During the afternoon we went through the Cleaning Components and Techniques module, where we discussed how best to clean, and which products to use in which environments. We also dealt with product consumption and wastage – making sure the ladies understand how to manage their working environments effectively. Next we dealt with task, chemical and equipment lists, and how to schedule their work loads to ensure maximum productivity.
Towards the end of the day did a Dreaming workshop where we discussed their life stories and dreams for the future. Many of the women were deeply moved by their fellow’s stories, as each took turns to share dreams and aspirations with the class.
During this last week’s session, we focussed on safety principals for the workplace – discussing issues such as how to answer the phone, who to call in the case of an emergency, taking messages and how to react in the case of various emergency situations. This was helpful on multiple levels, as we discussed the stories of various women who had experienced fires in the townships. We talked about how to best take action in fire scenarios, and they shared how they had reacted in the past.
We also had a drawing and drama exercise where the women drew renditions of unsafe situations they had previously found themselves in, and how they would change their behaviours today.
On the whole the most encouraging thing I have noticed during the course is the confidence that being on this training has given these women. They seem full of life and excited to be given personal attention! I’ve realized how little one-on-one attention these ladies have been given, perhaps none at all, and how deeply it impacts them as people to know that they are being developed because someone cares about them and their futures. It’s a beautiful thing to witness and take part in.
- Andrea Bester
Domestic Worker Training
Blue Sticker Training is a Cape Town based training and skills development company, focused on bringing skill training courses to those who’ve had fewer opportunities for education.
Currently running under the supervision of DI Manage, a parent company, Blue Sticker is equipped to train domestic workers throughout South Africa.
Mission
Our mission is to adequately equip domestic staff to excel in their working environments – both in the office and the home. Every area of work excellence is covered, from the detailed tasks of cleaning, all the way through to planning and management.
We also place emphasis on personal growth counseling, in order to help the ladies start a small weekend-business, as well as manage their finances and banking. This is done to ensure greater job satisfaction and mental health for the workers, as well as seeing to our social responsibilities.
Products
Unit Standards (Training Courses) on Offer:
Office Cleaning
Quality Management
Personal Finances
Domestic Housekeeping
Cleaning Essentials
+27824905467 http://www.bluestickertraining.com
How to pay off your bond…
An interesting new business idea that has spawned in the USA – painting the outside of your home in advertising billboards – in exchange for bond payments.
Though this idea has yet to appear in South Africa, and may need to be changed to painting the outside walls of the home (since most homes have high walls around them), it’s still a nifty way of paying off the bond.
Here is a quote from their website, concerning how they do it:
“We’ll paint the entire outside of the house, minus the roof, the windows and any awnings. Painting will take approximately 3 – 5 days. Your house must remain painted for at least three months and may be extended up to a year. If, for any reason, you decide to cancel after three months or if we cancel the agreement with you, we’ll repaint your house back to the original colors… In exchange, we’ll pay your bond every month for as long as your house remains painted .”
Would you exchange the good will of your neighbours for the price of your bond payments? I’m sure many people would.
How long will it be before someone in our country catches on to this idea?
Check out their website here: http://www.adzookie.com/paintmyhouse.php
Industrial Relations Update – Disciplinary Action
Employers are often stumped when they are confronted with employees who commit disciplinary transgressions just after the employees previous warnings have expired. The employee then escapes dismissal as he/she always avoids being sanctioned whilst on a final written warning. This is especially so in companies where disciplinary codes set out a hierarchy of warnings for specific offences.
The above scenario is due to employers believing that in matters where dismissal would follow on a progressively (e.g. late-coming, negligence etc), that they can only dismiss if the employee is on a final written warning. This was the defense of the employee in the matter of Gcwensha v CCMA [2006] 3 BLLR 234 (LAC).
In this matter, the employee was dismissed for gross negligence after a number of warnings for incompetence, negligence or inefficiency. After losing in the CCMA and Labour Court, the Gcwensha took the matter to the Labour Appeal Court on the basis that the employer had taken into consideration a lapsed final written warning against him. The LAC held in favour of the employer and held that an employer may dismiss employees in appropriate circumstances even if there is no final written warning in place. The fact of the matter was that he was on a “warning” that placed him on terms. The employer was entitled to take into consideration his “deplorable” record when deciding an appropriate sanction. The employer’s disciplinary code was a guideline; the employee knew what was expected of him; and he was aware that he was on a warning. As such the employer was entitled to dismiss even though he was not on a final written warning as required in the code.
This case is important as it highlights a number of important points:
- When reviewing your disciplinary code, ensure that the preamble/introduction to the code clearly states that it is a guideline and that the circumstances of each case must be taken into consideration when implementing discipline.
- Do not allow you disciplinary code to be too strictly interpreted – it must be a guideline to ensure that fairness is maintained in the workplace.
- You must ensure that when you discipline an employee who frequently transgresses, that you advise the employee that his entire disciplinary record may be considered when determining the appropriate sanction. This will ensure that employees do not pick and choose their transgressions to ensure that they are not related or similar in nature.
- In the event of you coming across an employee who has a number of different warnings for various transgressions, you should convene a meeting with the employee and advise that his overall behaviour as an employee is unacceptable. This will assist in ensuring that further transgressions may result in dismissal, even if the employee is not on a specific final written warning.
Regards
Andrew Breetzke
DI Manage launches Blue Sticker Training!
DI Manage has just launched a training company named BLUE STICKER TRAINING, focused on training the kitchen and cleaning staff of both homes and offices…
Blue Sticker has developed 2 primary training courses so far (with many more to come), both shaped according to Services SETA Unit standards.
The first training course is set to begin on the 3rd of May 2011, and will be focused on skills development for Domestic Workers in the household environment.
Here is a brochure for the course:
Please feel free to share this with anyone you think might be interested!
Check out the Blue Sticker blog here.
Free mobile banking network launched!
“In South Africa, an estimated 13 million people — 27% of the population — are currently without bank accounts. Simultaneously, 94% of the adult population possess a cell phone. Just as M-PESA realized the potential for mobile technology to bring banking to the masses at low costs, the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship and Forus Financial Transaction Services will similarly be launching the Mahala Free Banking Platform in May 2011.Previously, the necessary requirements for owning a bank account imposed by tradition banking systems — such as a having a minimum income and possessing administrative, literacy and record keeping abilities — have meant that for many South Africans owning a bank account has not been a possibility. What’s more, often banks haven’t been available in many undeveloped areas, or, if they are, high loan rates and bank charges have been necessary to cover the cost of dealing with cash. As Mahala is a mobile banking service operated on a freemium model, lending institutions won’t be demanding costly bank charges and traveling costs when handling loans and other transactions, and they’ll also be able to track how their clients are performing. In Mahala’s own words, “Value-added services may be charged, but only to merchants and advertisers. Hence, the corporate and business sector subsidize the individual, while all share in the lower costs and additional revenue from higher transaction volumes.”
By introducing mobile banking based on a freemium model, Mahala will be hoping to create thousands of jobs and assist numerous entrepreneurs who will now have access to capital. In order to make the free service possible, Forus is acting with government figures to supply their services free of charge, according to a report on Ideate.
Ideate also report that once the roll-out is complete, it is estimated that the government will be able to save in excess of ZAR 5 billion a year in cash distribution costs. As innovations keep on coming in the realm of mobile banking, this is a market to get involved in!”
