South Africa is seen as the land of milk and honey for many African countries because of its strategic position and its fast growing economy. Consequently, our country’s borders are often infiltrated by people who come in search of a better life but the majority do not view immigration compliance as an important aspect when entering the country and they often cross borders illegally. The thousands of Zimbabweans crossing the borders daily is a prime example of this.
On the other side of the spectrum are the qualified skilled professionals who wish to come to South Africa to benefit from its growing economy and the vast opportunities that are available. These people have a great deal to offer by bringing much needed skills into the country.
With the South African government calling for the appointment of foreigners if necessary to address the skills shortage in South Africa, the idea is that immigration and work permit issues should no longer be a deterrent for companies wishing to employ a foreigner who can provide the necessary skills. To this end, the Department of Home Affairs, in conjunction with other relevant government departments, have identified certain categories of employment in which there is a skills shortage.
South Africa has had two changes to its immigration legislation during the past four years. The first major amendment occurred in April 2003 with the promulgation of the Immigration Act No 13 of 2002, which repealed and replaced the Aliens Control Act. A category of permit was introduced called the ‘quota’ work permit which was intended to attract skilled professionals to the country.
The categories were generic and divided according to an individual’s qualifications and experience and catered for individuals ranging from those with post-graduate degrees and five years of professional experience to individuals who merely have skills acquired through training. The quotas in the categories ranged from 60 000 to 90 000. This structure worked well as any individual could fit into a particular category, even someone with no professional qualifications at all who had accumulated skills through years of experience rather than formal qualifications. Many people in business would confirm that such an individual is often invaluable to a company.
In February 2006, new categories were promulgated according to specific professional categories and classes. There were 56 specific occupational categories catered for in the following broad occupation categories: Science and Engineering; Education; Information Technology; Health and Medical Sciences; Agricultural Sciences and Management and Commerce. The quotas ranged from 100 to 5 000. This varying array of classes seemed to have addressed the areas in which there was a lack of skills, but because the categories were so specific, one could only apply for a work permit in a category if the individual was going to be employed as a space scientist or an atmospheric physicist for example. If an individual held qualifications in these fields but was not going to be employed in that specific position, then they did not qualify for the permit. Another problem was that each category required five years’ relevant experience and young professionals who had just qualified could not apply for the permit.
In April 2007, another amendment was made to the categories. There are now 53 specific professional categories in the following generic occupations: Call/Contact Centre Service Managers; Information and Organisation Professionals; Manufacturing and Construction Engineering Professionals; Natural and Physical Science Professionals; Biomedical Engineers and Technicians; Health Professionals; Education Professionals; Agricultural and Science Technicians; Science Technicians; Building and Engineering Technicians, Manufacturing and Process Technicians; Fabrications Engineering Trades Workers; Mechanical Engineering Trades Workers; Electro-technology & Telecommunications Trades Workers and Jewellers. The requirement for at least five years’ relevant experience remains. The quotas in the various categories still range from 100 to 5 000.
The developments over the last four years indicate a trend towards identifying specific categories in which there is a perceived skills shortage and an attempt to address them through the quota work permit. The question then arises: do these categories actually cater for skills dearth in the country? As immigration practitioners, our experience has been that the majority of individuals we assist with work permit applications are those at management or equivalent level in companies. From a logistical and practical perspective, a company will only spend time and money in relocating an individual if he is at a senior level and in possession of skills or qualifications that would warrant the appointment.
It is also commonly accepted that there is a shortage of artisans in South Africa. There are various organisations employing researchers in various fields who do not fit into the designated categories. These researchers are appointed after attempts to find South Africans and this leads to the assumption that these must surely be categories in which there is a lack of skills.
The Department of Labour released a State of Skills report in 2005 for the period 2004 to 2009 in which the following are included: senior officials and management - including project managers, financial managers, sales and marketing managers, general managers, business leadership, entrepreneurs; financial specialists - including Chartered Accountants, Auditors, and Actuaries amongst others. None of these categories features in the quota work permit categories.
The question that many South Africans ask is why we do not first try and solve the issue of unemployment in our country before allowing foreigners to come in and ‘steal’ our jobs. Unfortunately, our experience has been that in various industries, there are simply not enough skilled South Africans to fill the required positions. The majority of those with the skills left for greener pastures. Surely the view should be that if foreigners can bridge the gap and in the process upskill South Africans, then this should be embraced instead of frowned upon. The Department of Home Affairs, being the main conduit for authorising foreign skills entry into the country, together with The Departments of Trade and Industry and Labour, have a major role to play in ensuring that various initiatives designed to address the skills shortage through introduction of foreign skills, become effective.
Issued on behalf of Deloitte
Contact: Vandana Dayaram, Assistant Manager, Global Employer Services
Tel: (031) 560 7084
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Contact: Sue Brewitt
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