There are many reasons why over 1,800 corporate partners have signed on to do YES beyond the B-BBEE benefit. Our corporate partners know that the YES programme enables actual, macro-change that ripples through families, communities, and the entire country.
Whether a company is placing youth internally or externally through a YES host partner, country, company and youth are able to reap short-, medium- and long-term rewards.
The YES quality work experience (QWE) aims to both enable employment and increase employability for South African youth. YES thinks beyond the 12-month QWE by providing youth with crucial documents on completion of the programme, including a CV, a reference letter and a completion certificate. These documents become evidence of work experience for future employers, effectively breaking what we call the “experience trap”.
Research has shown that experience on a CV triples the chance of a callback in the first three months of a job search. For women, a reference letter doubles the chance of her winning the job.
Each YES Youth also receives a smartphone with pre-loaded, zero-rated applications that deliver digital, work readiness and soft skills training, as well as track the youths’ socio-emotional shifts throughout the YES year. For YES, “employability” is about delivering well-adjusted, experienced and keen youth to the workforce, and that means taking a holistic approach to “development”.
Together with our partners, we’ve already created over 71,000 work experiences for young South Africans, equating to more than R4 billion being injected back into the economy directly through youth salaries.
The effects of this salary, however, are far more wide-reaching than just the individual youth. 88% of YES Youth come from grant-recipient households, and 91% have dependents, translating to a salary that ripples through families and even communities.
The YES B-BBEE Level Up Benefit sits outside of the B-BBEE scorecard, however, participation in YES and receipt of level up(s) is dependent on points on the scorecard. So, if you’re already operating within the B-BBEE space, YES is an effective way to gain levels over and above your standard B-BBEE strategy.
All you have to do is meet your YES QWE target (based on the higher of three different calculations), and then absorb 2.5% of those youth at the end of the YES year to get one B-BBEE level up. Double this and receive two levels up while changing even more youth lives!
To calculate your target, click here. Or, click here to read more about YES and whether you qualify.
In the first year participating in YES, your business can register to do YES before its financial year-end to gain B-BBEE level(s) up almost immediately. You just need to ensure youth are contracted before their financial year-end date.PLUS if you register for your first YES programme before your financial year-end, your business can gain its B-BBEE level ups almost immediately.
The YES turnkey solution (which allows corporates to place youth externally through a YES host partner) is designed to go beyond enabling work experiences.
The YES turnkey solution works with 33 YES-vetted host partners across South Africa to place youth. These partners are generally NGOs working in high-impact sectors such as digital, health care, education, conservation, early childhood development and SMME support.
Your company can use the creation of youth jobs to also impact social, environmental, and economic issues that align with your holistic environmental, social, governance (ESG) and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) strategies. Essentially, your business can create critical youth jobs in sectors that are relevant to you, creating impact beyond B-BBEE.
One of the biggest draw cards about the turnkey solution is that corporates can place youth in communities, which means youth do not have to travel far for work, combatting spatial inequality. Young people working where they live is a huge win not only for the youth, but for the community, as they can play an important part in building their own communities, and their local economies.
5. Create a talent pipeline
The internal placement model is an ideal talent funnel which de-risks recruitment. The programme enables you to try out youth cohorts and select the best fit. You can then develop these gems into long-term employees with best matches to your organisation’s culture and values.
YES and its partners have given critical first chances to over 71,000 young people (58% of whom are women), who continue to grasp every opportunity with both hands.These youth, who are dying to show the world their potential and what they can do, never fail to impress us and the hero companies who enable opportunities.
Many YES corporates have very high absorption rates because they see the value these young people bring to their organisations when given a chance.
6. YES is more than just a tick box exercise
The first five reasons should provide evidence of the fact that the YES programme delivers real, measurable, significant change to the lives of South African youth, the YES partners, and the country as a whole.
Whether a corporate is doing YES for B-BBEE or not, they know that the investment in the youth will reap rewards for years to come, either through targeted community and environmental upliftment, or through developing talent for their business.
Our hero companies know that enabling employment and employability for youth helps develop future customers who will have the buying power to support their business. With two in three young people currently unemployed, this aspect to youth development is crucial for economic survival.
YES is truly a win-win-win for country, company youth.
Over 1,800 corporates have already signed up to co-create a future that works for all.