Isuzu offers paid work experience to 72 youth

In an effort to help reduce the number of unemployed youth across the country and in support of the Youth Employment Service (YES) programme, Isuzu Motors SA has placed 72 candidates for onsite practical work experience.

Launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2018, the YES programme has been punted as offering young South Africans paid work experience through a number of initiatives over a 12-month period.  

Isuzu Motors SA general manager of training and organisational development  Wayne Osborne  said they remained committed to the growth and development of young South Africans.

“We believe that our youth deserve opportunities which accelerate employability.

“It is our intention  that, through the YES Programme, we will create a pipeline of talent for the future," Osborne said.  

According to Osborne, for the first time this year the programme would present students with a 12-month work-based internship opportunity.

Of the 72 students, 20 had been placed within the dealer network throughout the country while the remaining 52 candidates had been deployed across the company.

Osborne said the programme would provide candidates with insight into the operations of a large corporation while they gained practical work experience.

“The trainees will receive all the necessary support and are guided and mentored by professionals within the company,” Osborne said.

In March, Volkswagen Group SA announced it had offered 520 candidates similar opportunities through the YES programme for the second consecutive year. 

According to the latest report from Stats SA , youth aged between 15 and 24 were the most vulnerable group in the  labour market, with an unemployment rate of 55.2% during the first quarter of 2019.

In the report, Stats SA said while the unemployment rate among graduates was still lower than the rate among those with other educational levels, it showed that education was still key for improving the prospects of youth within the labour market.