THE EXPANDED PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME EPWP 1 INTRODUCTION

THE EXPANDED PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME (EPWP) 1

INTRODUCTION 2

BACKGROUND n President’s State of the Nation Address February 2003 n Growth and Development Summit June 2003 n Cabinet approved conceptual framework November 2003 3

NEW NATIONAL POVERTY RELIEF FUNDING ARRANGEMENTS n No special poverty relief allocation (SPRA) from 2004/05 n Some previously SPRA-funded programmes to be continued through line-function budgets, eg working for water n No funding for CBPWP from 2004/05. Former CBPWP funds to be integrated into municipal infrastructure grant (MIG) n Consolidated municipal infrastructure programme (CMIP) to be phased out and replaced by MIG n DPW will not be given funds for projects, no applications to DPW for funds 4

DEFINITION Nation-wide programme which will draw significant numbers of the unemployed into productive work, so that workers gain skills while they work, and increase their capacity to earn an income 5

OBJECTIVE To utilise public sector budgets to reduce and alleviate unemployment 6

This will be achieved by: q Creating productive employment opportunities n Increasing the labour intensity of government-funded infrastructure projects n Creating work opportunities in public environmental programmes (eg Working for Water) n Creating work opportunities in public social programmes (eg community health workers) n Utilising general government expenditure on goods and services to provide the work experience component of small enterprise learnership / incubation programmes 7

q Enhancing the ability of workers to earn an income, either through the labour market or through entrepreneurial activity n Provide unemployed people with work experience n Provide education and skills development programmes to the workers 8

9

TARGETS, SCOPE, AND INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS 10

TARGETS n Target the unemployed and marginalised n To provide one million employment opportunities with training to unemployed people, within the first five years of the programme 11

SCOPE n Covers all spheres of government and SOE’s n Each public body must formulate plans for utilising its budget to draw significant numbers of the unemployed into productive work, and to provide them with training 12

INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS n Overall coordination by EPWP unit in DPW n DG’s Steering Committee n Sector coordinating Dept’s: DEAT, DTI, DSD n Link to NEDLAC Public Works committee n Provinces to establish provincial committees to drive the programme 13

EMPLOYMENT CONDITIONS AND TRAINING 14

EMPLOYMENT CONDITIONS n Employment conditions during work experience will be governed by the following frameworks gazetted by DOL: § Code of Good Practice for Special Public Works Programmes, or § Learnership Determination for unemployed learners 15

n Key aspects of the EPWP employment conditions frameworks: q q Gazetted after negotiations at NEDLAC Allow for special conditions of employment to facilitate greater employment on Public Works Programmes: ß Employers may set rates of pay locally at self-targeting rates, to avoid attracting workers away from more permanent employment ß Reduced obligations for employers, eg no UIF insurance payments ß Task-based payment for labour-intensive works 16

n These special conditions of employment are on condition that: q Workers have an entitlement to training q The duration of employment of a worker under these special conditions is limited 17

Training: examples of possible exit strategies 18

TRAINING n n n In the social and economic sectors, there are long-term employment opportunities for the trainees, and all the trainees will receive sector-specific training – key role for SETAs For infrastructure projects and some environmental projects, manual labour is locally employed for the duration of the project, and there are few long-term employment opportunities in these sectors for manual labour However, there are some long-term employment opportunities for contractors, supervisory staff, artisans, and maintenance workers in these sectors 19

n n n SETAs to play a key role in training of contractors, managerial and supervisory staff and artisans – eg CETA already doing this for infrastructure sector Training for manual workers employed for the duration of the project must be focused on other areas, where there are longer-term income opportunities Success of training for temporarily employed manual workers depends on our ability to establish links with other GDS programmes, and other government programmes such as LED and adult FET 20

n n DOL putting in place a generic short course for temporarily employed manual workers, focusing on life skills and labour -market information Aim of short-course is to provide workers with information about other opportunities, after the EPWP project, such as internships, learnerships, and further education and training. Temporary employment on EPWP projects could be a stepping-stone to other longer-term opportunities Generic short course could also include assessment and selection elements, EPWP projects could be used as a mechanism to select workers for other opportunities 21

INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAMMES n Plan in place for labour-intensive construction and maintenance of provincial and municipal infrastructure: q q Targets types of civils infrastructure most amenable to use of labour-intensive methods, where large numbers of additional work opportunities can be created Departments and SOE’s encouraged to do more 22

n Total conditional infrastructure grants over next five years = R 45 bn (targeting 1/3 of this) n At least R 15 bn will be spent on labour-intensive upgrading of rural and municipal roads and municipal pipelines, stormwater drains, and sidewalks over the next five years n Aim to create work opportunities for 750 000 targeted unemployed people (250 000 person-years of employment) 23

Implementation of the labour-intensive provincial and municipal infrastructure programme n EPWP conditions will be included in the Division of Revenue Act (DORA) for the conditional provincial and municipal infrastructure grants (PIG and MIG): q q q Certain types of infrastructure projects must be done labourintensively projects, in accordance with DPW guidelines cover identifying, designing, and producing tender documentation for labour-intensive projects Guidelines require provinces and municipalities to apply eligibility requirements for appointment of contractors and engineers on labour intensive projects (they must be qualified in the use of labour intensive methods) 24

n Provinces and municipalities prioritise and decide on projects using their PIG and MIG funding, using normal allocation methods, such as Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) n National not involved in allocation of funds to projects – provinces and municipalities allocate in line with DORA conditions n DPW will provide support to provinces and municipalities to simplify implementation n Possible funding assistance for support from Business Trust (Facilitation Fund) and donors n CETA and DPW putting in place NQF unit standards, qualifications, and accredited training programmes for contractors and engineers for labour-intensive construction 25

n Training: q q All 750 000 workers will obtain training funded by the Department of Labour CETA-funded learnerships for 500 emerging contractors in labour-intensive construction Learner contractors will receive classroom and on-site training, exit from the programme with qualifications, experience, and credit record Graduate contractors will tender for ongoing labour-intensive projects issued by government 26

n DORA conditions are aimed at creating a minimum amount of labour-intensive construction. Government bodies are encouraged to do more n Other infrastructure programmes with potential (plans still to be developed), eg maintenance of government buildings, trenching in the electrification programme n Aim to create a further 150 000 work opportunities (50 000 person-years) for targeted unemployed people from other infrastructure programmes over the next five years 27

ENVIRONMENTAL AND CULTURAL PROGRAMMES n Includes: q q DOA Land Care programme DEAT People and Parks, Coastal Care, Sustainable Land-based Livelihoods, Cleaning up SA, Growing a Tourism Economy programmes q DWAF Working for Water, Wetlands, Fire programmes q DAC programmes 28

n Aim to create work opportunities for 200 000 targeted unemployed people over the next five years (200 000 person-years of employment) n Aim to create 400 sustainable SMME’s n Scope for further expansion, eg waste management 29

SOCIAL PROGRAMMES n DSD to produce sector plan n Initial focus of social sector initiatives: q q Home-based care workers - Community Health Workers (DOH) and Community-based Care and Support Workers (DSD) – target 2. 9 million beneficiaries from services Early childhood development (ECD) workers (DOE and DSD) – target 400 000 children serviced 30

SOCIAL PROGRAMMES n 150 000 unemployed to acquire temporary work and income n NGO’s and CBO’s to continue as other delivery agents of social sector programmes, funded by government and possibly business n Learnerships consisting of recruitment of unemployed people and volunteers, providing them with on-the-job experience, a stipend and training for a period, leading to NQF qualifications and possible longer-term income opportunities 31

ECONOMIC PROGRAMMES n 12 000 unemployed to acquire temporary work n 3 000 venture capital learnerships n Possible economic sector initiatives: q q q Community production centres (Do. A) Community-based / cooperative income generating projects (GDS) (possible funding from business) Enterprise ‘incubator’ / learnership programmes (DOL, DTI) 32

FUNDING 33

SUMMARY OVER FIRST FIVE YEARS 34

PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION TIMEFRAMES n n Complete remaining aspects of all Implementation plans Implementation has started on parts of sectoral plans which are ready: q Preparations for labour-intensive infrastructure programmes are under way, some programmes are running, expansion from April 2004 q Environmental programmes are running END 35