Electrical trade

[ians]

The joke is that the facility is there and the railways has the funding, I believe it is the skilled people who are missing. Some smart ass came up with a thing called BBEEE and offered all the skilled people packages to leave. So knowing their fate, left.

When South Africa wipes the shit their eyes, they are going to wonder why the rest of Africa is growing with skilled people, farmers and there is nobody left here but a bunch of rich union members and no employees with any skills.

Someone has given me a good idea, they are leaving for Tanzania, he indicated that in that country people want to learn skills, it is a growing economy and they have realise that having skilled white people is not such a bad idea.

Time to start expanding my options.

[Justloadit]

Yep the countries up north have reached rock bottom, now they want to grow, and the fastest way to do this, is to offer good incentives to skilled people, and whilst this is a great option for skilled people, they will in turn part with their knowledge and the locals will improve with time.

Our folks here must still go through the cycle of hunger before they realise what they have lost.

Once upon a time, if you wanted to learn a craft from a master, you had to work for free for a number of years in lieu of the payment to learn the craft.
Our folks want to be paid to learn, and in the majority of cases, their absorption skills is suffice to simply get by on a 30% pass.
This to me is a sorry state of affairs, and the damage being caused by the BEE is still to be felt.

Whilst I accept that there were imbalances to correct, the manner in which BEE was/is applied is not the right answer. If they simply left the situation as it was with respect to the skilled, the situation with in the scales that we have already passed would already be righted.You can only learn skills from some one more qualified than you, and if you look at the population numbers, in a very short period of time, positions would have been filled by qualified PDI's, who would have had the right training to be in the respective positions.

[Yuri]

The opposite is also true. How many 40 year and older electricians can change direction on a single phase motor
How many can phase a 3 phase motor if the terminals are loosen

[Dave A]

Some smart ass came up with a thing called BBEEE and offered all the skilled people packages to leave. So knowing their fate, left.

Actually, it was the National Skills Development Plan (and the concept of learnerships) that shut down the apprentice system. If memory serves me correctly, the NSDP was rolled out about 5 years prior to BEE.

[ians]

The opposite is also true. How many 40 year and older electricians can change direction on a single phase motor
How many can phase a 3 phase motor if the terminals are loosen

I fall into this category, can do both and some

[ians]

Sorry Dave we seem to be on a different page, I am talking about back in the day when there were many skilled educators at the training centres who where offered packages to help then on their way to make space for people from the higher education department.

The railway training centre is still open, just nobody there to teach the skills and only the odd appy or 2.

[ians]

Just looking at this whole thing from somewhere out there, I am starting to wonder if there is not something else at play here. Ever thought that maybe what they are trying to do is get to a point that they need to "bring in" skilled people from "other countries"

When I look at what the government is made up of, the key people (not the top brass...toffee oops I mean trophy person) the presidents right hand man is an......the minister of finance is .......

Just saying the cane cutter where bought in by the ship load back in the day.

[Dave A]

Sorry Dave we seem to be on a different page, I am talking about back in the day when there were many skilled educators at the training centres who where offered packages to help then on their way to make space for people from the higher education department.

Aah - that would be EE - employment equity. And yes you're right, teachers were offered spectacular packages to take early retirement.

Also a Kadar Asmal "bright theory" that backfired horribly.

[Jacques#1]

HA...These guys make me look good, need people like this in the industry . No seriously, some of my client wait literally a month before I can help them if i get very busy, cause they dont trust anyone else, especially having to work with the guys you just described. Blame the training centres. They do a better job of selling than teaching. A lot of the guys who parks outside builders stating they are electricians, have a certificate from these centres, but only level one. Nevertheless, they were sold that they can wire now, and they are electricians, with no preactical experience so they buy it!! Ive got two guys, one said he did his courses at the training centre. I had to teach him EVERYTHING from scratch. But, I prefer this, both my guys knew nothing, and I taught them how to do it MY way, or the High way.....simple

[ELECT 1]

We arent attracting many new people into the industry for a few reasons.
One of them is the remuneration. There is nothing attractive working for peanuts.
In SA there still seems to be a stigma attached to a tradesman. If you arent good enough for academia , then do a trade.
Perceptions are changing, but too slow.

Apart from big business, most small operators don't really know how to run a bossiness or how to employ people.
Their intentions are good, but dealing with an employee in the correct manner, learning how to make a profit, learning customer communication skills, and working with various complicated things, is one of the causes of problems in the industry at this level.

A few years back, cant remember the details, but there was an electrical equipment supplier in Calgary, in the window was a sign, courses available on how to start and run a small electrical business successfully..there were modules to do.
I thought very interesting. It would definitely be in the interest of the wholesaler if you all can run your business well.