Intimidation not way to get work
Small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) may well be the backbone of SA’s informal economy but, whatever their size, they need to realise there are generally accepted guidelines for running a business. And, despite what some SMME owners appear to believe – as seen in Monday’s report in The Herald – intimidating other companies into sharing or giving out work is a definite no-no. Of course SMMEs have a right to call for more work, particularly at times when unemployment is high and jobs are scarce. However, if anything, this provides all the more reason to be scrupulously professional when trying to access opportunities.
On Monday, The Herald reported on a group which had approached Proservices at the Bridge Shopping Centre and demanded to be given 30% of the work.
Apart from appearing to bite the hand that you would like to feed you, some of the reported threats were blatantly racist and this is simply unacceptable.
Although the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality follows a policy of giving 30% of jobs to SMMEs, there is no legal minimum percentage which must be given to them. What is more, there are different guidelines for the private and public sectors, and the SMMEs should make it part of their business to know this.
As municipal executive director for economic development, agriculture and tourism Anele Qaba noted, the state has no say in the private sector.
Then, even within the public sector, the figure of 30% is only enacted once supply chain management processes have been followed.
It appears numerous private projects have been affected by SMMEs demanding work, with workers intimidated and work halted. Their frustrations may be understandable, but this is not the way to resolve them.
It may scare off investors, leaving a smaller pie to be shared; erode the relationship between big and small business; and slow down construction, which costs money. Our first and most important criticism, however, is this is blackmail and the contractor is fully entitled to have laid an intimidation complaint with the police.