IEASA National - News

IEA News - September 2005   Article Date :28 Oct 2005 1. "A most successful and fulfilling year" Report from AGM 2. Congratulations! Awards presented at AGM 3. The Compliance Column (4) Personnel administration "A most successful and fulfilling year" "It is a pleasure to report once again that the Institute in the Western Cape has had a most successful and fulfilling year," IEA regional chairman Anne Porter said in her report to the 68th annual general meeting in mid-September. "All our objectives for training and membership growth have been met, and our special mentorship and development projects have been a resounding success." The report was read by vice-chairman Peter Venter, as Anne Porter was overseas. Training - IEA Western Cape had a record year for training: 49 training courses and seminars, attended by 1583 students. Morning workshops and seminars, and seminars held by the area committees, proved exceptionally popular: 40 were held and they were attended by 2696 agents. The total number of people trained during 2004-05 was nearly 900 more than in 2003-04. IEA Western Cape has been registered as a "Recognised Provider" by the Services SETA. Mentorship - The IEA's mentorship programme for previously disadvantaged estate agents, now in its third year, continues to be in high demand, and it has been expanded by adding a special course for agents in Khayelitsha (see last month's IEA News). "Special mention must be made of Vivien Marks and her team of trainers and support staff. Their enthusiasm for the project, and dedication to their students, is without parallel." Area committees - The area committees, which liaise between the IEA and its members, were active throughout the year. "Without them, we would not be the successful organisation that we are," Anne Porter said. "Their functions are always enthusiastically received, and generate a huge feeling of camaraderie among the members." Showhouse signboards - The issue of showhouse signboards in the Cape Town unicity has not yet been resolved, and the Council is still debating whether or not to ban them. However, the system of deposits has been abandoned, and each estate agency firm is now simply required to pay an annual fee of R400 for a permit to display showhouse signs. Land Affairs - During the year, IEA Western Cape made a formal submission to the Department of Land Affairs' panel of experts on foreign ownership of property. "We concluded that foreign investment in South African property was modest," said Anne Porter, "and that it was a sign of confidence in the country and had a generally positive effect." General manager Vivien Marks attended the Western Cape Provincial Land Summit as part of the "business constituency", and supported the principle that land redistribution should be based on the "willing seller/willing buyer" principle. Property Charter -The draft transformation charter and scorecard for the property sector were finalised in June and is pending ministerial approval for it to be implemented in January 2006. "However," said Porter, "while the scorecard may be suitable for developers and corporate property investors, it bears little relevance to the residential estate agency industry and we understand that a separate scorecard is to be produced for the industry." Competition Commission - As is now well known, the Competition Commission ruled that the IEA as a whole had contravened the Competition Act by publishing tariff guidelines in the past, and in order to protect its members from individual investigation, the IEA agreed to pay a half-million-rands fine and destroy all unsold tariff books. IEA Western Cape had to pay a substantial share of the fine, and as a result the proposed Sebenza upliftment programme had to be cancelled. Thanks - Anne Porter thanked the IEA regional directors and staff for their support over the past year. The directors are all unpaid, and willingly and freely give of their time and expertise to assist in the running of the Institute. "Each one of our Office staff is a star! "Thank you for your enthusiasm and your passion for the Institute and our Industry." Congratulations! Awards presented at AGM To Virgil Allen, who was awarded a certificate in recognition of his 24 years as an IEA member and eleven years as a regional director. "He has brought the fruit of his years of experience in the property industry to the Board and his interest and dedication to the Institute have been exemplary." To Mark Marks, who was recognised for his 23 years as an IEA regional director. "Mark is called upon by this office to give of his expertise more than any other director. He always willingly shares his knowledge." To the members of the 2005 Mentor Group, who graduated at the AGM. "They have been a great group of estate agents to instruct. They have had outstanding attendance, indicating their dedication to learning more about real estate." The Compliance Column (4) Highlighting the many things that estate agencies need to do to keep on the right side of the law. Please note that these are only pointers: for detailed information, you should contact the relevant authorities. Personnel administration § on appointment, give each employee a letter containing a job title, job description, details of working hours, payment, leave, and any other conditions of employment § keep a confidential personal file for each employee § keep a leave record for each employee § keep a salary record for each employee § on termination of service, give the employee a signed certificate stating his/her name, job title, dates of commencement and termination, final salary and reason for termination § on termination, in addition to the final month's salary, pay the employee the cash value of any vacation leave which he/she has accrued but not taken (vacation leave only: not sick leave or maternity leave) § retain the records for at least three years after the employee has left the firm § keep a copy of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (or the authorised summary of it) in the office, for employees to consult whenever they wish (contact the Department of Labour to find out where you can buy a copy) § have procedures in place to deal with employee grievances, and with employee misconduct or poor work performance, and make sure your employees know about them A useful source: SA Labour Guide website (www.labourguide.co.za) CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO THE MAIN NEWS PAGE