BUSINESS NEWS - The Skills Development Levy (SDL) is a 1% levy imposed by the South African Revenue Service (Sars) to encourage learning and development and is determined by an employer's salary bill.
The funds are to be used to improve skills of employees.
In terms of the act, organisations may claim back up to 20% of their paid SDL, if:
- They have paid SDL tax
- They have submitted a Workplace Skills Plan
- They provide approved training to employees
- Benefits
- Staff training and, more importantly, the right and coordinated training promote a learning culture in any organisation, big or small. That will only be possible if the planned training is aligned with the strategic objectives of the company and the personal development plan of the individual.
Apart from the tax rebates, other benefits to a company that takes pride in their staff development include:
- Increased competence and increased productivity
- Improved staff morale
- Larger companies that seek maximum BBEEE scorecard points can also benefit from accredited training programmes offered to both their own staff, and through enterprises and supplier development.
What to look out for in a
training provider?
It is true that there are many good training providers with excellent programmes, and as a company it is always difficult to decide on who to use.
Most of the time a decision is based on lowest price or choosing the first course available, whether it is accredited or not. In essence, the choice lies with the company, but unaccredited training cannot on its own be claimed back, irrespective of the quality of training.
- Is the training provider accredited and approved?
- Is the training programme SAQA Unit standard aligned and credit bearing?
- Will the training provider supply a certificate of competence and not just a certificate of attendance?
- Proven track record?
- Own offices and support staff?
- Range of programme offerings?
- What are included or excluded in the quotes – are the quotes comparable?
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