Job centres to revolutionise youth employment

A partnership between the Mpumalanga Provincial Government and leading youth employment engine, Lulaway is set to revolutionise youth employment in Mpumalanga.

The Mpumalanga Provincial Government has partnered with Lulaway in launching a promising initiative to transform job opportunities and job access in the province.

The province-wide workforce development project aims to increase access to jobs for young work seekers, equip them with much needed work-readiness skills and place them in new and existing job openings in the private sector.

“We welcome the Lulaway initiative to bring new innovative companies into the province. The provincial government is committed to ensuring a conducive environment for business to create jobs for our people, especially the youth and women. We have thus opened our arms to new businesses that want to invest in the economy and seek to help us address the pressing challenge of youth unemployment in the province,” said MEC Sikhumbuzo Kholwane.

Leading youth employment engine Lulaway is responsible for the implementation of the project, which launched in January 2019, and follows a similar initiative currently running in Cape Town.

There are three distinct outcomes to the project.

Lulaway will register the CVs of 16 000 young work seekers on its online job seeker portal.

These candidates will also receive work-readiness training, providing them with the skills and knowledge to succeed in the workplace.

Finally, 2 000 of them will be placed in jobs at various employers throughout the province.

Lulaway chairman Andile Mkhosana says that this project intends to transform the entry-level recruitment landscape of the province.

Mkhosana explains that by creating a fair and efficient labour market exchange, existing vacancies can be filled, and willing job seekers should be able to more easily find employment.

“Working with numerous employers, we have seen that there are many unfilled entry-level vacancies across the country. Presently recruiting the right staff is so difficult that employers choose to make do with their current headcount. Our goal is to streamline the entire process where employers and job seekers can efficiently find each other, allowing companies to fill vacancies,” describes Mkhosana.

This model is ideal for tech-based employment platforms (such as Uber and Helpling.

Helpling is an international online booking and payment platform that connects customers with pre-vetted local cleaners).

“This is a positive factor for tech-based employment platforms looking to expand their footprints into Mpumalanga. These companies need sophisticated recruitment options to operate effectively and with the support of Lulaway to handle their recruitment, expansion becomes attractive for them. We combine technology with a physical network of job centres, seamlessly connecting the largest numbers of job seekers and employers. No one is excluded due to their lack of access to technology, and employers can scale up easily,” says Mkhosana.

This exciting development is one example of what can transpire on a provincial level through such initiatives.

Mkhosana explains that the project’s success depends on strengthening and expanding its relationships with the private and public sector.

“As this is an initiative that the province introduced, it demonstrates a firm commitment to drive growth, and to build strong partnerships in all sectors. It is clear that youth employment is a top priority and we will be working with the various municipalities and other partners to ensure as many youngsters from all regions access skills and job opportunities. The support of the province also allows us to offer our recruitment services to businesses in Mpumalanga at no cost,” Mkhosana says.

Lulaway has unmatched expertise in implementing effective youth employment solutions.

In eight years, it has registered close to half a million youth on its portal and placed 30 000 young people in jobs.

Its unique understanding of the complex environment of youth unemployment allows it to provide high-impact solutions to real world problems.

“This is an ideal opportunity for the public and private sector, job seekers, and government to work together towards reducing high levels of unemployment and grow the economy,” concluded Mkhosana.