OFO No:

What is a Labour Relations Officer?

Labour Relations Officers may work for government or for private companies.

A Labour Relations Officer’s main job is to guarantee that both managers and employees are satisfied.

A Labour Relations Officer must keep up to date with all labour and wage laws. They must also keep up to date with company policies that relate to employees, for example contracts, wages, working conditions etc.

Some Labour Relation Officers must represent the company in labour/union disputes, for example, if the employees go on strike etc.

What does  Labour Relations Officer do?

• keeps up to date with labour and wage legislation
• reads and keeps up to date with company employment / employee policies
• attends meetings
• observes workers and writes reports
• listens intently to both sides of a dispute
• reacts fairly and without bias (does not make one side their favourite)
• assists with matters relating to employment, retrenchment, disciplinary hearings
• assists with matters relating to appeal hearings at the CCMA
• gets involved in the co-ordination of settlements and negotiations when strikes occur
• prepares lots of paperwork relating to issues at hand

Are you . . . ?

• a person who can remain objective in an argument or dispute?
• logical?
• understanding?
• a good communicator?
• dedicated?
• fair and reasonable?
• able to remain calm under pressure?
• a good listener?
• organised?

How do I become a Labour Relations Officer?

You will need a qualification.

A Bachelors degree from a recognised university in one of the following will be advantageous:

• Business Administration
• Labour Relations
• Human Resources (HR)

Once you have collected enough work experience and skills in this area, you may consider doing a post graduate degree in a specialised field. Work experience as a union representative will always be beneficial.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER:  Job Development Specialist or Recruitment Agent

Is becoming Labour Relations Officer the right career choice for me?

OFO No: 226303

What is an Ergonomist?

An Ergonomist is an occupational health expert. They study and specialise in designing comfortable and efficient items for offices, home studies and factories.

An Ergonomist studies anatomy to understand how the body (bones and muscles) work. With this information, they then design items like furniture, tools, office environments etc to suit the body so it can work more efficiently and be more comfortable at the same time.

Ergonomists usually work on research and development teams and alongside industrial engineers.

Ergnomists can work for large corporations, furniture companies or work for themselves as consultants to many companies. Some even work for car manufacturers and architectural companies.

What does an Ergonomist do?

• does market research
• interviews various staff about tools, piece of furniture or about a building
• interviews staff about physical problems they may be encountering at work
• takes measurements and photographs
  
• collates the data and makes informed decisions
• starts designing new and improved solutions for the workplace
• liaises with engineers and other members of staff
• makes prototype (a full size example)
• puts prototype through testing programmes to find any faults
• solves any manufacturing problems
• consults to companies and organisations
• writes reports and advises

Are you . . . ?

• a problem solver?
• creative?
• a person who can think out the box?
• a person who can think and ‘see’ in 3d?
• a good communicator?
• original?
• hard worker?
• a people’s person?
• thorough and systematic?

How do I become an Ergonomist?

You will need a qualification and once qualified be certified.

All individuals wishing to practice as Ergonomists will be required to be certified, effective immediately (2015). Please contact the Ergonomics Society of South Africa for further information.

ERGONOMICS SOCIETY OF SOUTH AFRICA (ESSA)

ESSA sets the minimum standards for qualifications for the recognition of competency in Ergonomics.

Individuals who meet the pre-determined criteria may apply to be certified by the Board.

Registered Ergonomist:

Minimum requirements:

M+3 – BSc Degree in Ergonomics or CLOSELY related field PLUS completion of a course in Ergonomics recognised by the ESSA … OR …

M+5 – MSc Degree in Ergonomics or CLOSELY related field from an ESSA recognised institution

For more info, CLICK HERE

Only some universities offer these courses. Check with your university of choice to see if they do.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER: Graphic Designer or Industrial Designer

Is becoming an Ergonomist the right career choice for me?

OFO No:

What is a Leadership Development Specialist?

The job of a Leadership Development Specialist is planning all aspects of leadership development, career paths and performance management within a company.

A Leadership Development Specialist will use methods like:

• On-the-job training
• Electronic / online training
• Practical, hands-on training
• Theoretical training
• Job shadowing

What does a Leadership Development Specialist do?

• observes employees to monitor their performance/s
• recommends leadership programmes
• develops training manuals
• conducts training sessions
• keeps records
• writes reports
• evaluates the long term effect of training programmes
• assists managers to develop people skills

Are you . . . ?

• a people’s person?
• observant?
• a good communicator?
• a motivator?
• fair and reasonable?
• a good listener?
• dedicated?

How do I become a Leadership Development Specialist?

You will need a qualification.

We suggest you complete a business administration degree and then a post graduate degree (Masters in Business Administration MBA) or diploma in Leadership Studies or Leadership Management.

• GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS and LEADERSHIP (GSB&L) in KZN

Offers the above post graduate degrees.

• NELSON MANDELA METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Also offers a variety of Leadership programmes

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER:  Human Resource Manager or Labour Relations Officer

Is becoming Leadership Development Specialist the right career choice for me?

OFO No: 121201

Other names for Human Resources Manager

• Employee Relations Manager
• Personnel Manager
• Transitions Manager

What is a Human Resources Manager?

A Human Resources Manager’s main job tasks are to co-ordinate and control all aspects of the ‘humans’ (employees) within the company.

What does a Human Resources Manager do?

(depending on company)

• liaises with each member of staff on a personal level to assist them
• writes up employee contracts
• plans and directs industrial relations activities, strategies and practices
• negotiates wage structures and conditions of employment for staff members
• organises recruitment for new positions open in the company
• organises training for staff
• handles employee dismissals (firing) and also promotions of staff
• keeps up to date with employee rights and legislation
• consults and liaises with other managers in the company

Are you . . . ?

• a peoples’ person?
• a good negotiator?
• fair?
• empathic and understanding?
• a good listener?
• a good communicator (write, read and speak)?
• open minded?
• a hard worker?

How do I become a Human Resources Manager?

A Human Resources Manager is usually older because they have years of HR work experience as well as one or more relevant qualifications.

Qualifications:

You will need a Bachelor of Commerce degree in HR. Most universities offer this.

If you only start your career with a Diploma in HR, that’s fine. You will just have to work slightly longer to collect more work experience and skills along the way.

Either way, only your determination and hard work will get your there, if you want the job as HR Manager one day.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. 
• CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

• SA BOARD FOR PEOPLE PRACTICES (SABPP)

You should be registered with the SABPP. It’s not compulsory but highly recommended if you’re serious about your career path.

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER:  HR Clerk … or … Recruitment Agent

Is becoming a Human Resources Manager the right career choice for me?

OFO No: 333301

Other names for a Recruitment Agent:  

Casting Agent
Employment Advisor
Employment Agency Consultant
Employment Consultant
Employment Placement Officer
Labour Recruitment Recruiter
Occupational Guidance Officer
Recruitment Coordinator
Recruitment Officer
Recruitment Resourcer

What is a Recruitment Agent?

A Recruitment Agent works for a recruitment agency or they can be self-employed. 

A recruitment agency offers a service to companies to advertise, search and interview candidates for jobs available at that company. They will then narrow the number of suitable candidates down to 2 or 3. 

Recruitment Agents will then arrange interviews for the candidate with the company.

Some recruitment agencies specialise in a particular field of recruitment.

For example: 

• retail and sales
• temp positions
• IT
• medical positions
• travel industry etc

Here are 5 reasons why a company would hire a recruitment agency:

• Saving the company time – especially if they don’t have the staff to do it
• The company is looking for a ‘new’ post that they have no expertise in
• Hiding employment opportunities and business activities from their competitors
• Being careful not to upset other departments in the company which may be retrenching
• Agencies that specialise, may give the company advice

What does a Recruitment Agent do?

• meets new and potential clients/companies
• creates a loyal and trustworthy relationship with clients/companies
• advertises jobs in newspapers and online
  
• meets job hunters to find out their skills and work experience
• sources suitable candidates through advertising, referrals and the agency’s databases
• interviews possible candidates and narrows the possibilities down to 2 or 3
• sends the company the cv’s of the possible candidates
• contacts candidate for interview with company
• facilitates all the negotiating and paperwork
• keeps database up to date
• constantly looks for new job seekers as well as new companies that may want the agency’s service

Are you … ?

• a peoples’ person?
• organised?
• computer literate?
• interested in business?
• a person with a broad knowledge of careers?
• a good negotiator?
• analytical?
• a good communicator?

How do I become a Recruitment Agent?

To begin with, you could start off in recruitment agency as a trainee Recruitment Agent. In this position, you will be trained on-the-job.

Another way to become a Recruitment Agent is to be a specialist (graduate) in your field together with years of experience in the work place. 

For example:  A Computer Programmer, Personal Assistant, Dentist etc. 

This experience will help you understand what other jobs in your field are all about and what kind of people are needed to fill those jobs. Once you feel confident that you have enough experience, you could apply for a job at a specialist recruitment agency, or start your own agency.

Courses, certificates and diplomas in Business and Human Resources (HR) would be extremely advantageous.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER: Accommodations Service Manager or Customer Service Manager 

Is becoming a Recruitment Agent the right career choice for me?

OFO No:

What is a Job Development Specialist?

Job Development Specialists are usually consultants who are hired by companies or organisations. Some Job Development Specialists will specialise in a certain sector like mining, or retail or education while other Job Development Specialists will have broad knowledge of almost all careers. They promote and develop employment and on-the-job training opportunities.

A Job Development Specialist has 3 main tasks:

• Career development
• Team or department training
• Track and keep up to date with the job market

Career Development:

• The Job Development Specialist may help individuals with regard to finding employment, writing CV’s, and/or train them for interview etc.

Team or Department Training:

• The Job Development Specialist may assist companies or organisations with finding the right person for the right job, assist some employees improve their skill sets etc. They could organise training sessions for certain departments within the firm.

Keeping Up To Date:

• The job market is forever changing. New jobs are available, salaries are different, government legislations changes etc – therefore, the Job Development Specialist needs to continue to research and keep up to date with these facts and figures and other issues like unemployment.

They also need to find out which jobs are in demand and which sectors are overstocked.

What does a Job Development Specialist do?

• constantly researches the job market for jobs and other job-related information
• assists companies and organisations where necessary
• assists individual with regard job hunting
• writes articles to assist job hunters
• counsels individuals about career choices
• helps people get permanent employment
• conducts team training

Are you . . . ?

• a peoples’ person?
• a good communicator?
• interested in a variety of careers?
• a good listener?
• helpful and resourceful?
• understanding?
• a good ‘teacher’?
• patient?

How do I become a Job Development Specialist?

There are no direct qualifications to become a Job Development Specialist.

We suggest you must have a passion for careers in general and a healthy appetite for helping people.

A qualification in HR (human resources) or counselling might be helpful. It will be up to you to do the necessary research on the various careers available so that you can give career advice.

Maybe, after you have studied, you can find work in a recruitment agency or HR department and then collect the experience and skills you will need to become a Job Development Specialist.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER:  Human Resource Manager or Human Resource Clerk

Is becoming a Job Development Specialist the right career choice for me?

OFO No: 242401

Other names for Training Development Professional:

Learnership Manager
Training Advisor
Training and Development Practitioner
Training Consultant
Training Coordinator
Training Material Developer
Training Office

What is a Training and Development Professional?

A Training and Development Professional researches, designs and implements training and development programmes targeted specifically for that company/organisation, so that staff and teams may work as efficiently and as productively as possible.

This enables the company to grow and become more profitable.

What does a Training and Development Professional do?

• observes staff in action during work hours
• researches and interviews staff members and teams from various departments
• collates the data
• designs and develops training programmes to improve skills sets and productivity
• creates tests to determine effectiveness of training programmes
• facilitates training programmes
• evaluates staff after training to see that it has been effective
• checks to see that training has met competency requirements
• liaises with management
• writes reports

Are you . . . ?

• observant?
• a people’s person?
• a motivator?
• a good communicator?
• a good listener?
• a hard worker?
• can you think out the box?
• innovative?

How do I become a Training and Development Professional?

You will need a qualification. A qualification and experience in Human Resources or HR Management will be extremely advantageous.

You can do an HR course through most universities of techology or SA universities, including UNISA (distant learning).

Once you have your qualification, experience in the workplace would be necessary for you to pick up more skills. From this point, you could either study further or work harder for a promotion further up the HR ladder.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER:  Labour Relations Officer or Leadership Development Specialist

Is becoming a Training & Development Professional the right career choice for me?

OFO No: 441601

Others names for HR Clerk:

Employment Office Clerk
Human Resources Assistant
Human Resources Planning Clerk
Human Resources Records Clerk
Human Resources Systems Administrator
Inland Revenue Pay and Personnel Officer
Overpayments Officer
Personnel Records Clerk
Recruiting / Recruitment Clerk
Roster Clerk

What is a Human Resources Clerk?

A HR Clerk works in the Human Resources department of a company.

They are responsible for maintain and updating all the employees records with regard to:

• Personal information (address, telephone numbers etc)
• Qualifications
• Employee’s leave
• Salaries
• Bonuses
• Tax etc

What does a Human Resources Clerk do?

• checks and updates employee records
• starts new record files for new employees
• double checks that information is correctly captured
• processes promotions
• handles employee enquiries regarding job related information
• compiles job adverts for positions in company
• prepares reports
• uses and stores information on computers

Are you . . . ?

• a good and accurate typist?
• detail orientated?
• responsible and reliable?
• organised and methodical?
• able to pay attention?
• good with people?
• helpful?
• a good communicator?

How do I become a Human Resources Clerk?

You will need a qualification. You will need a National Certificate in Human Resource Administration or something similar.

Once you have this, you can try to get an office job, preferably in the HR department. Once there, try and learn as many skills as you can. If you like, over time, you can do more courses and training to improve your position and salary in the company.

Most institutions offer some form of HR course.

TRAINING:

• CLICK HERE to check for a training institution near you to see what they offer.
• Make sure you understand their entry requirements for each course.
• To avoid scams, make sure your institution is registered with the Department of Higher Education. CLICK HERE to check accredited Private Higher Education Institutions. 

OTHER CAREERS TO CONSIDER: Recruitment Agent or Social Worker

Is becoming a HR Clerk the right career choice for me?