1 Mid-Term Evaluation Report On Apparel Sector Training Partnership with Brandix Lanka Limited under the USAID Public Private Alliance (PPA) Technical Assignment Implemented Under USAID- VEGA Facilitating Economic Growth Sri Lanka Program By Merrilene Peramune VEGA CONSULTANT September, 2011 Disclaimer: “The consultant’s views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development or the U.S. Government.” 2 Executive Summary The Brandix PPA was intended to provide training to 600 sewing machine operators in the Brandix factory providing employment opportunities for people from the conflict affected Eastern Province and the North Central Province. As at December 2010 208 trainees were accounted for and a revised agreement was initiated to extend the period until 31 January 2013 to cover the remaining number with some adjustments of the deliverables and a new component of transportation to meet the issues faced. The mid-term evaluation was undertaken to assess the deliverables on the revised agreement and verify the deliverables through interviews and discussions with Brandix management, associates, former associates and current employees. The mid- term evaluation also covered the effectiveness of the training, opinion of the associates on the training received and the financial rewards to the trainees. The evaluation was carried out in August –September 2011. The report details the results of the mid- term evaluation focusing not just on the numbers trained but on assessing retention of trainees and other qualitative aspects of the training and uncovers issues and constraints in this workforce development model. The lessons learnt are shared and some recommendations are made to ease the ineffective and cumbersome processes involved in keeping track of the various training periods which do not fall in line with practice. Motivating and retaining trainees even during the training period is a significant issue and some suggestions have been made to overcome these concerns. Overall the workforce development effort has been successful in bringing people from all three communities to work together in a workplace where shared commitment is necessary to achieve common goals. It is a good example of corporate commitment which can enable reconciliation to happen in practical terms. USAID’s support to enable this type of practical project to become a reality has borne fruit in that even though the Company has not yet reached its 600 associate target, and we can be confident it will do so in the next one and half years, it has enabled 2,222 associates from different communities to come together in a common workplace even for a short time. 3 Contents Brandix PPA Background & Current Status ................................................................................................... 5 The Mid Term Evaluation .............................................................................................................................. 6 Terms of Reference ................................................................................................................................... 6 Methodology followed.............................................................................................................................. 6 Findings of the Mid Term Evaluation ............................................................................................................ 8 General Findings ....................................................................................................................................... 8 Assessment of the Current Status of the Training Delivery ....................................................................10 Associates Trained Under Revised Deliverables .................................................................................10 Associates Trained during the Total Period ........................................................................................10 Retention of Trainees during the Training Period ..............................................................................11 Training Provided to Associates & Feedback from Associates ...............................................................13 The Training School .............................................................................................................................13 The Training Program ..........................................................................................................................14 Feedback on the Training Program .....................................................................................................15 Income of Trainees ................................................................................................................................. 16 Issues and constraints in the Workforce Development Model ..............................................................18 Transportation Arrangements and Effectiveness ...................................................................................19 Lessons Learnt and Recommendations ......................................................................................................20 Training Period ....................................................................................................................................20 Categorization of Trainees ..................................................................................................................20 Motivating and Retaining Trainees .....................................................................................................20 Issue of Certificates .............................................................................................................................21 Working in Post-Conflict Areas ...........................................................................................................21 Appendix 1: Current Status of the Deliverables on the Initial Agreement .................................................22 Appendix 2 : Revised Deliverables on the Extended Contract ....................................................................23 Appendix 3: List of All Machine Operators Who Have Been Trained Over 8 Months under the Revised Agreement ..................................................................................................................................................25 Appendix 4: Sample of the Letters Issued On Completion of Training .......................................................43 4.1 Letter issued previously ........................................................................................................................43 4.2 Format of Letters Currently Being Issued to Trainees ......................................................................45 Appendix 5: Training Schedule for Employees Within The Training School ..............................................49 4 5 Brandix PPA Background & Current Status Brandix established its apparel production facility in Punani, at the border of the Eastern Province and the North Central Province at the request of the government and its own efforts to source labor and expand capacity. The facility was also aimed at bringing to the newly liberated Eastern province and the border villages of the NCP the benefits of connecting with the economic mainstream of the country. The Punani site, adjacent to the army camp, also brought an element of security to the Company to offset the risk of investing in the Eastern Province while the war in the Northern Province was at its peak. USAID partnered with Brandix in 2008 in this effort to provide workforce development to the young people of these areas for whom there were very few viable economic options. The intention was to also provide alternative engagement options for young people in the East who had hitherto known only a conflict related lifestyle. The initial agreement between Brandix and USAID spelled out a workforce development program for 600 persons as sewing machine operators for an initial training of 2 months and a further training of 6 months on the production line. Brandix had the option to absorb the trainees into their cadre if vacancies existed. The allowance/salary paid to the trainees during the 8 month training period was to be compensated by USAID while Brandix would meet the cost of the training materials. In addition USAID also agreed to meet the cost of two translators. As at December 2010, Brandix had accounted and claimed salaries/allowances against only 208 associates trained for the total of 8 months. Appendix 1 details the current status of the deliverables on this agreement. In late 2010 USAID reviewed this arrangement and decided to revise and extend the agreement with Brandix by extending the period of the workforce development program up to 31 January 2013 to enable Brandix to cover the full quantum of 600 sewing machine operators trained for 8 months. As it had been identified that the failure to train 600 associates during the previous period arose from a high rate of drop outs USAID proposed two strategies and included these in the extended contract: a)the total number of initial trainees was increased up to 1,000 associates for 2 months to enable Brandix to end up with a further 392 associates trained during this period even with 50% drop out rate and b) transportation was provided on a cost sharing basis to enable Brandix to operate four buses to transport its workers and trainees to and from their villages. The extended contract with Brandix commenced on January 31 2011 and will terminate on January 31 2013. In summary the revised deliverables are as follows: 1. Train 392 associates, sewing machine operators, for a total of 8 months 2. Recruit and train up to 1,000 associates for two months 3. Purchase 2 buses for staff transport Refer Appendix 2 for details of the revised deliverables on the extended contract. 6 The consultant’s initial meeting with USAID emphasized that under the Workforce development agreement Brandix was required to provide pre-training and on-the-job training for a period of 8 months and the fulfillment of the training agreement with USAID did not stipulate continuous employment thereafter. It was expected that Brandix would offer employment to the trainees beyond the 8 month period if vacancies existed. The Mid Term Evaluation Terms of Reference Based on the terms of reference the consultant undertook the following tasks: 1. Meet with the management of the Brandix factory in Punani and review the deliverables and the tasks. 2. Verify data and assess the achievement of the revised deliverables to date. 3. Meet with a sample group of associate/trainees undergoing pre-job training, on-the-job training and those employed fulltime after completion of the eight months training and verify deliverables. 4. Carry out an opinion survey among the trainees about the quality of the training received. 5. Review the financial benefits and incomes of beneficiaries. 6. Analyze and validate data collected. 7. Submit an assessment report with recommendations. Methodology followed 1. Meeting with USAID to understand the scope and background and determine areas of concern 2. Review of documents provided by USAID a. Relevant pages of new agreement with Brandix, original agreement with Brandix, Table of deliverables and milestones Phase 1 and Phase 2 b. List of employees who have completed eight months training 3. Field visit to Brandix factory to meet management, trainees, employees and former trainees/employees. The objective was to discuss the Phase 2 deliverables, gather information on how the deliverables are being executed, ascertain information to determine the actual numbers of eligible trainees and obtain feedback from trainees. Figure 1: Meeting with Brandix HR Manager 7 a. During the field visit the list of 618 employees trained for 8 months that was provided by USAID was used as a starting point. b. A 20% sample was drawn on a random selection basis by the consultant and 130 files and records of these employees were checked. c. All necessary data from the hSenid HRM System were obtained for each and every employee ever recruited to the training program. The last reported date from the attendance system was captured to determine the total period the trainee/employee had spent at Brandix. d. Random samples were drawn and employees, trainees and former trainees were interviewed. A total of 44 trainees and former trainees were interviewed as follows: i. Employees who have not signed a copy of letters – 10 persons ii. Current trainees – Training School and on line - 8 persons iii. Employees who have left before and after completing training - 16 persons iv. Current employees who have completed training - 10 persons e. Interviews with Human Resource Development Manager, HR staff – 2 persons, Training section staff – 2 persons, other staff related to employee recruitment and retention f. A field visit was made to the homes of current and former employees who had received training in the factory. Two areas were selected – one in the Polonnaruwa District of the NCP, an area of predominantly Sinhalese settlements, and one in the Batticaloa district of the Eastern Province, an area of predominantly Tamil and Muslim settlements. g. A trip was made in the bus to evaluate the transportation arrangement and talk to the employees to determine the success and relevance of the transportation arrangement. 4. Analysis of data and presentation and validation of initial findings with USAID. 5. Further data analysis based on the outcome of the review meeting with USAID and report preparation. Figure 3: Discussing the Training Program with Training School Staff Figure 2: Meeting employees during the field visits 8 Findings of the Mid Term Evaluation General Findings The general background information of recruitment, training and staffing can be summarized as follows: 1. The factory is running under apparel production orders received by two companies in the Group – Brandix Intimate Apparels and Brandix Casual Wear. All trainees are recruited to these two companies. A separate EPF number has been obtained for each of these companies at the Punani factory address and so employee and EPF records are maintained separately for this location. 2. All trainees are permanent employees from the day they are recruited. There are no casual and temporary employees. 3. All workers are issued with EPF numbers and employee numbers in sequence. 4. Employee files are maintained for each and every employee and employee records and attendance are captured in the hSenid HRM System. 5. Letters of Appointment are issued from start of training period with a 6 months probation period. 6. Around 20-40 people turn up for interviews every week. Around 65% from Batticaloa District. After interviewing and selection around 5-15 people are selected for work. In the pre-selection process a brief test is administered to check the ability to concentrate, simple mathematics and communication. 7. At the end of the training period a letter is issued to the employee that he has successfully completed the training. A copy of the letter is placed in the employment file. In some cases the copy is acknowledged. 8. All factory employees start with the same pre-training and are issued with the same letters of completing their training irrespective of whether they are sewing machine operators, packers, ironers, quality control persons or stores employees. 9. The factory operates only one shift from 7.30am to 4.30pm 10. The present factory configuration is 12 sewing machine lines with 16 machines in each line 11. The staff requirement to run the current machinery is as follows: a. 12 x 16 machine operators = 192 machine operators b. 12 x 1 leaders = 12 leaders c. 2 supervisors = 2 supervisors d. Ironing 2 x 12 = 24 ironers e. Cutting 5 cutters + 40 helpers = 45 cutting crew f. QC 2 x 12 = 24 QC g. Packing 2 x 12 = 24 Packers h. Stores i. Maintenance/Canteen/General cleaning 12. Total current direct labor requirement is 465 persons including a 25 person training buffer. 9 13. According to the experience of the company the minimum level of operation for factory viability is 600 employees. It is not clear if this means 600 sewing machine operators as that would translate to around 35 sewing lines. 14. From the commencement of the operation up to 24 August 2011 2,222 people have been recruited by Brandix. This was determined based on the sequentially running EPF numbers and includes staff and supervisors. Brandix Intimate Apparels 1,084 and Brandix Casual Wear 1,138 15. The current staff cadre is 465 persons. 16. The factory requires an expansion of capacity to meet its minimum operating level but is however unable to obtain more staff. 17. Low labor turnout and high labor turnover are significant operational issues. 10 Assessment of the Current Status of the Training Delivery Associates Trained Under Revised Deliverables Under the revised deliverables in the Brandix PPA which commenced on 31 January 2011 the total number of associates trained as sewing machine operators is 228 up to 24 August 2011. In addition 5 sewing line leaders have received training. We may consider including them in the deliverables as they are trained as SMOs first prior to being developed as line leaders. The calculation of the delivery was arrived at by considering all those who completed 8 months on or after 31st January 2011 and on or before 24 August 2011. The total number of people trained in this period is 340 persons and includes all other related categories. Refer Appendix 3 for a detailed list of the machine operators trained under the revised deliverables. Associates Trained during the Total Period At the request of USAID the consultant also worked out details of SMOs and other categories of staff trained from the beginning of the project. From 2008 and up to 24 August 2011, a total of 411 are sewing machine operators have received training at the Brandix factory for a period of 8 months. The total number of employees who have received training in all various related functions in the apparel sector is 609 persons. See Table 1 below. Table 1: Employees Trained for a Period of over 8 Months BIA BCW Total Total Employees Trained over 8 months 324 285 609 Section wise/Job wise Cutting Section 16 25 41 Cutting Recorder 2 2 Fabric Inspection 2 2 Ironing 14 20 34 Packing 18 18 36 QC 17 16 33 QC recorder 1 1 Sample room 1 1 Sewing Line Leaders 11 5 16 Sewing Machine Operators 231 180 411 Stain removing 1 1 Stores Helpers 7 7 14 Stores Recorders 3 2 5 Canteen Staff 3 3 Gardeners & Cleaners 1 7 8 Mechanic 1 1 Note: the above excludes office staff and supervisors BIA – Brandix Intimate Apparel BCW – Brandix Casual Wear 11 Retention of Trainees during the Training Period Since the retention of trainees during the training period was an area of concern in fulfilling the initial agreement the consultant looked at how trainee retention has fared among the different skills trained. Figure one and Table 2 below show the retention of trainees who have completed a period of 8 months training against the total recruited for each category. Figure 4: Employee Recruitment and Retention during the Training Period The level of trainee retention for sewing machine operators is 47% and not much different than for other line functions like packing (40%) and cutting (39%). In fact the retention of sewing machine operators during the 8 month period can be considered quite high compared with other categories like quality control (29%), ironing (30%) and sample room workers (17%). Only in the stores section has the retention been much higher at 52% for helpers and 83% for stores recorders. Refer Table 2 below. 12 Table 2: Employee Retention by Category Section/Job Employees Trained over 8 months Total Recruited % Retention during training period Cutting Section 41 106 39% Cutting Recorder 2 3 67% Fabric Inspection 2 2 100% Ironing 34 113 30% Packing 36 91 40% QC 33 115 29% QC recorder 1 1 100% Sample room 1 6 17% Sewing Line Leaders 16 20 80% Sewing Machine Operators 411 881 47% Stain removing 1 1 100% Stores Helpers 14 27 52% Stores Recorders 5 6 83% Canteen Staff 3 15 20% Gardeners & Cleaners 8 19 42% Mechanic 1 14 7% Of the 881 sewing machine operators recruited 252 (29%) had dropped out in the first 2 months. So therefore, 24% of them have dropped out in the 6 month on-the-job training period. A further analysis of the data showed that 41% of those dropping out within the first two months left in the first two weeks. 68% of those dropping out have left within the first three weeks. Refer Table 3 below. In the 8th week the number of people dropping out is very minimal. We know from the training schedule in Appendix 5 that the first 2-3 weeks is not a period where machine operators work in the line but are rather kept within the Training School. It is likely then that during the first two months dropping out has more to do with orientation or assimilation into the factory type environment than in the difficulty of the actual work. Table 3: Analysis of Drop out within the First Two Month Period Period of Training No of Associates Percentage of Total Drop Outs Cumulative Dropouts % 0- 1 week 68 27% 27% 1st week 35 14% 41% 2nd week 22 9% 50% 3rd week 21 8% 58% 4th week 25 10% 68% 5th week 23 9% 77% 6th week 28 11% 88% 7th week 22 9% 97% 8th week 8 3% 100% 13 Training Provided to Associates & Feedback from Associates The Training School Brandix has a well appointed training school in a separate building in the factory premises. Around 25 sewing machines of various types are provided for training. Two trainers, a bi-lingual (Sinhala and Tamil) speaking lady and a Sinhala speaking man handle all the training in the school and in the initial stages on the production line. Figure 5: Training School Figure 6: A New Trainee Practices in the Training School 14 The Training Program The scheduled training course within the Training School is scheduled for a duration of one month. Appendix 5 details the training schedule for employees within the training school. In addition to receiving sewing training employees are also given an orientation of working in an office environment and other practical life skills like eating at table, use of washrooms, health and hygiene. All recruits go through this training. During this period employees who are not suitable for sewing machine operation or who display other skills like capacity to understand quality related functions are identified and moved out of the training room to be trained directly on the production line and in the factory in the various other functions such as packing, cutting, ironing and stores. Employees with at least a level of study up to the GCE O/L are trained for 1-2 weeks in the training room and then moved into intensive training on quality control on the production line. The maximum period an employee will be kept in the training school is eight weeks. After 3 weeks to one month in the Training School sewing machine operators are given training on the production line. All employees in one training batch are kept together in one production line as far as possible and a 16 member team is formed. This aspect of training is closely monitored. For Figure 8: Trainees work on the Production Line. Trainer is standing in the background. Figure 7: Trainer and Executive Help the Trainees Set a Machine during Training on the Line 15 the first few weeks low production targets are set for the training line. The trainees are gradually moved towards achieving the necessary production standards in terms of output and reject rate. During this time the output of this production line is aggregated with the rest of the production, even though a high percentage of rejects and re-work is experienced. At the end of two months all trainees (not only sewing machine operators) are given a letter confirming their basic training. This letter is in Sinhala or Tamil and is issued to them through the line supervisor or HR staff. At the end of a further 6 months a letter of completion of training is issued to all employees. Until the beginning of this year only one letter has been issued covering both periods. See Appendix 4 below for a sample of the training letters. According to the Brandix Training program as seen in Appendix 5 all trainee should be at machine operator grade C level within 8 weeks. As we can see from the above the Brandix training system has no clear demarcation of a two month and six month training process. It is apparent that this system is now maintained to fulfill the requirement of the USAID agreement. Feedback on the Training Program The consultant’s interviews with the trainees showed the following: • Employees were happy with the training received. They claim the work is not hard. Several types of jobs to suit skill level & trained accordingly • Reasons Employees have left – mother or child has been ill, no one to take care of the children at home, marriage, sickness, need to assist family with field work during planting and harvesting, distance to work and late hour of return (in some areas the houses are very far from each other). • A few employees have left due to inability to get along with team mates • Highly sensitive to social issues – e.g. getting reprimanded in front of others/by others. Not used to workplace settings and some are from highly stratified societies (especially Tamils) • In the case of Muslims some have left as parents or elders do not like them going out to work. • Some trainees/employees leave and rejoin after the personal crisis is over The Brandix trainers mentioned that some employees leave when they are put on the production line as they are unable to cope with the pace of production line work. Almost all have never worked outside of Figure 9: A Trainer Overlooks Training on the Production Line 16 the home before and are unused to an office/factory type set up. The trainers claim that once people stay beyond the 8 month period they are likely to stay longer i.e. the dropout rate reduces. However when we look at the dropout rate in the first two months and the next six months the drop out in the former is only slightly higher at 29% than the latter, 24%. Income of Trainees All trainees are on the same salary scale as employees. The minimum salary scale for garment factory workers in Sri Lanka is applied. For trainees the basic salary is LKR 6,000 with an allowance of LKR 1,105 declared by the Government of Sri Lanka. The Company contributes an additional 15% of the basic wage to the Employees Provident Fund and The Employees Trust Fund. This takes the basic wage for trainees up to LKR 6,900. In addition an attendance incentive of LKR 1,500 is paid each month for those who are present for all working days. This is meant to be an incentive to develop a good work ethic. A production incentive is paid when the line achieves the minimum production targets. This is an incentive to acquire skills that will increase efficiency. Employees, including trainees within the 6 month period, work overtime every week and each employee may clock in an average of around 3-5 hours overtime per week. On average an employee will take home LKR 8-10,000 per month, some employees make as much as LKR 12,000.1 Employees are on a compensation plan that includes an annual increment. There appears to be no differential rate of pay for different categories – stores helpers, SMOs, packers, QC. Employees’ salaries are paid directly to their bank accounts and all employees are encouraged to open bank accounts to minimize cash transactions at salary payment. Consultants verified this in interviews and in most cases details of the bank account with a photocopy of the first page were in the employee’s personal file as well. In addition to the salary trainees and workers are provided a free lunch. The lunch is a simple meal of rice with a vegetable and fish or vegetable protein source. The meal is cooked in-house. Tea is served twice daily. This constitutes the lunch and refreshments captured in the deliverables as well. In addition breakfast is made available to employees at cost. The Brandix management said that this was started as many workers were coming to work without breakfast and found it hard to concentrate. In addition workers were prone to illness due to poor diet and irregular meals. However, less than 40% of the employees avail themselves of the breakfast facility. Additionally transportation to and from the factory is provided free of charge. Field interviews showed that the trainee/employee income is usually contributing very marginally to the family income. Interviews with employees showed that unmarried employees keep most of this money for themselves. Some of them had made purchases of jewelry and furniture. In the case of married employees the money was used for household expenses. In cases where the employee’s husband was a laborer he brought in an income of around LKR 15,000 per month. The current labor wage in the area is LKR 500 per day for women and between LKR 750-1,000 for men2 . Farmers made LKR 80,000 – 120,000 per harvest depending on the extent owned. Most farm families are self sufficient in food. Housing was 1 At the commencement of the workforce development exercise with Brandix USAID found that the rate of pay earned by these people was around LKR 2,500 per month. 2 The nature of casual daily paid work is that it will not be available consistently throughout the month or year. 17 minimal. Often the basic housing unit had been provided by the government or a Non-Governmental Organization. It was observed that those working in the factory did not show any better housing or lifestyles than their neighbors who were laborers and farmers. It is not clear if this is a matter of choice or affordability. The field interviews also showed that the women had very low aspirations and no plan of how they would or could use their incomes to better their lives. 18 Issues and constraints in the Workforce Development Model Some of the observations made by the consultant as issues in this workforce development model are as follows: 1. There is no clear understanding with the Brandix management that only sewing machine operators are to be included in the training agreement with USAID. 2. All trainees are being issued with the same letters and it is not clear if trainees other than sewing machine operators were included in the first 208 associates claimed in Phase 1. 3. The delineation of the two month and six month period is arbitrary as no such actual system of accounting for the training in these separate time periods exist in practice. Nevertheless employees are issued with 2 and 6 months training completion letters. This system requires keeping track of the employees period of employment to issue the letters. 4. Compounding the arbitrariness of the training period selected is that employees are confirmed in employment after six months, i.e. before the end of training period. 5. The two month pre-training scheduled in the agreement is the maximum period. The training program itself is designed for only one month. 6. At end of designated period of 2 months and 6 months training completion letters are issued through line supervisors, leaders or HR staff. There is no recognition of the employee. Thus it is just another letter and some employees do not even remember receiving it. There is a lack of awareness for employees. 7. There is no certificate being issued and no USAID branding used. The employees would have benefited by being issued with a certificate. 8. The old letter issued before 2011 is non descriptive, ‘ you have been trained’, See Appendix 4.1. The new letter is much more descriptive and details types of machine operator training and other general quality training. 9. All employees are issued the same letter – quality control, stores, packing, cutting, machine operators 10. In addition for the Company it was apparent that the training has had little impact on motivating and retaining trainees and employees. Low labor turnout and high labor turnover are the significant issues in the operation of the factory. 19 Transportation Arrangements and Effectiveness The transportation arrangements involve 4 buses pick up staff and to take them back to their various destinations. Two buses have been purchased by Brandix and part financed by USAID while the other two are hired buses. The buses leave the factory at 4.45pm with all employees on the normal shift. The buses operate along the main roads as follows: Bus 1 - to Eravur area, Batticaloa District Bus 2 - to Valachchenai upto Kalkudah, Batticaloa District Bus 3 - to Gal Eliya in Aralaganwila, Polonnaruwa Bus 4 – Polonnaruwa area The consultant travelled in the bus taking workers to Aralaganwila. This is the bus that travels the furthest to pick up and drop trainees. Nearly all of the 10-12 people we spoke to in the bus said that they started work with Brandix only after the bus was introduced. The last drop off happens around 7.10pm at Gal Eliya. The first pick up is at 5.15 am. Workers said that to get to the pickup point by that time they needed to leave home at 4.45 - 5 am. Overall the workers were happy with the transportation arrangement as it meant they reached home much earlier and with more safety than earlier. From the point of the Company it was observed that this also enabled them to bring in people from further away. Employees from these further locations were also pleased as not many options for employment are available in these remote areas. In some areas the buses could not go down the narrow lanes where workers lived and so they needed to travel 1-2 km to reach the pickup point. This is mainly in the Eravur and Valachchenai areas. The case of those working overtime, until 6-6.30pm, transportation by vans was arranged and they were dropped directly to their houses accompanied by a supervisor. This cost is met by the company. Figure 10: Workers Travelling in the Brandix Bus after Work 20 Lessons Learnt and Recommendations Training Period The actual program of training followed by Brandix is one month in the training school and the rest of the period on the production line. An employee is confirmed in employment at the end of six months. We may consider then that by six months the company deems the employee to be a full trained permanent member of its employment cadre, no longer a trainee. In this case we can see that practically the training period then is one month pre-training and five months on the job training. It is suggested that the deliverables be adjusted accordingly to avoid an artificial and arbitrary breakdown of the training period which is not in keeping with practice. Categorization of Trainees There seems to be some confusion whether all categories of factory staff or only SMOs are to be included in the training agreement. Although the agreement is very clear that the category referred to is SMOs, in practice it is apparent the Company is not clear on this point. This is further explained by the company issuing training certificates designed for SMOs to all categories of staff. The initial confusion may stem from the fact that when trainees are initially recruited the company has no idea if they will be suitable as SMOs or in other areas like packing, ironing etc. It is only after the first few weeks of training that the trainers by observation and assessment pick out those who will make the grade as SMOs. It is recommended that Brandix include all trainees therefore in the pre-training and include only the SMOs in the on-the-job training. Motivating and Retaining Trainees The company has been issuing letters to employees at the end of the 2 month and 6 month training period. However this has had little if any impact on trainees staying on up to the end of the training period. It is recommended that the Brandix management make an event of issuing both the two on and the six month training certificates on a monthly basis that will provide social recognition for the trainees among the factory staff.3 It was very clear that high absenteeism and high labor turnover are significant issues. It is apparent that employment, even permanent employment, has less value for the trainees and employees than social events. Especially among married staff children’s illness or lack of care givers when the care giver is sick are significant events. The possibility of including a day care center was discussed with the Brandix management. We were informed that space was available but the company could not involve itself with running a daycare. If a Non-Governmental Organization would like to play this role the company could assign a suitable space. The question of cost sharing needs further discussion. 3 The Brandix Management readily agreed to this and said they would make an announcement on the PA system and make an event of issuing the pre-training and on-the-job training certificates monthly from now on. 21 It was also clear that there was no apparent change in circumstances of people employed by Brandix compared to their neighbors – no social upliftment was visible. Further, employees had very low aspirations and this impacted even the need for a job or the value attached to training. The subsistence and temporary mind set developed during the long conflict period may have had much to do with this. It is recommended that the company provide some life goals coaching to workers beginning with leaders and senior employees to develop a personal development plan with milestones. These may also include skills to be acquired and personal goals for improving family circumstances, housing, children’s education, acquiring assets etc. This could even be a CSR exercise for Brandix which will bring the much needed motivation for staying on and achieving a future. The company may consider under this exercise even a housing loan scheme or a tie-up with the local banking sector to provide a housing loan for employees who have worked for a pre-determined minimum period of time. Issue of Certificates USAID may consider assisting Brandix to design a training certificate even at this late stage that will be a valuable document for the trainees. As an outcome of USAID workforce development effort it is suggested that this certificate be co-branded with USAID. Working in Post-Conflict Areas One of the key lessons from the Brandix PPA for post conflict work is that it has shown that different communities can work side by side in the same production line where the success of their work depends on each other. The factory workers from the Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim communities have found mechanisms to communicate, build trust and see each other co-workers and not enemies. This is particularly relevant in the Brandix factory set up where on the one side there are war affected people, internally displaced persons and former combatants coming to work in the factory from the Eastern Province who are managed side by side with people from the border villages of the Polonnaruwa district who were continuously targeted during the conflict period. The manner in which the factory has been able to bring these people together and enable them to work together on a single production line is a good example of building bridges. It has taken a lot of work on the part of the management to break through the scars and preconceptions of each other formed by the decades of conflict within which context all these young people have grown up in. This example is worthy of show casing and it is suggested that a case study be developed on how the Brandix management handled this situation from the beginning of the project. 22 Appendix 1: Current Status of the Deliverables on the Initial Agreement !o. 1 20B bcu[t!t; tH.""d a:nd employed One li.rno1fllining allo"'BIIoc for l eU assooiattj tnin.ed for g mon1h. ClI11Qotrn pre-job mil 6 C)llI~5 QI'"job) PN"ld. m¢.ilh for 208 _od.lts .,..:-jOO tr~inill!l for 2 months 2,574.000 10,,530,000 79S,6DD Twl of 208 associates ~rained for ~ w~eb ",,<1 employed 10 flrolDdiK I'>Immi ",''lury r", <> """,I . Providi~g 2 remshmctlli "'14 ./Ie ~DcII per do)' for 20S MSDCIl!~. for 8 woeks Let1.r of 00Il firmalron or Q;)rnplc1ion of trailling, ~ 1i$1 of ccf1lfical. boldcrs 8II1d • «)py or Snodix l'"Y"'ll for .... ploy"' ... ' . Lelkr COBflrnling tile dtUvl!I'8bl! & .I II. of stgll~oric:s in a meal clwt f~ r the provided meals 3IId .. frMllm~ ~Apr~9 r-------------~r------+------~-------------------+----------------------~ -forSLR JH,76D.10 731,3 6.20 Provide "" .... iIlo rS fur 208 associaltS two n>Onlb$ i'nIvisioo of F8bt~ for :W! assIXIM'4l! $ fta.1rJ~ $ Providing N.'C> tr8JU.io:!or< r .... S 16,4S1 . IraI1sialillg ~bab I Ent l ilb J Tamil '0 WlI aJ.10ei. l<$ PrQvislOO of fabric materials u.1( fl.,424 ,000 ~raioel'S l ... m.ou ro use· ~5 tmi>l\$ t11I tr.l i~ g malerials ,\ lc1tor of ~fiuttwllll • • ''',447360 • ?7.&01,9 I q b. pc;nocIIllI ,," ~b(~",~ . -'- .. ' .~ 24 No..J T "'''ad <011""1 dato [or fin" "'po" Fi~a l onnSQlid.ted ... port on Iho ""bievemOJlI of Pl'O?ralD obj o>ctlv.. ",d ~~lc:otoB. JII3-G-o~0<) OO500-0J P.A~. S of ... Copies ot Colllrn"erc iR.) 1n "o~; DeJIVCl I'}' Receipt .00 Ac~ .. ,,;., ODIe; Siprin,a (If cIOcumcnis wilh Iille Iran.r .. to Btandi. Wad:='1W81f.m a..ociolioo 10 off'_~ 11. "..-fodJol ~~ __ ~ . • :1. .... fIC .... ':"""""........, ... ,· .. , ~"""9'11-.. I = .. "..,.....:..s -gsA 46 2. At 6 months – Sinhala Letter , .,_d· •• ·•· _d·~ ••• '_·" •• ... ----"" """""- _ ... __ -.... -t_ .. ~ .....,.. ..... d........ ulOoItAo ~ ~~q~ __ ..... IIIocl .... _ .... """ ... ~~ ........ s:.. -,-01 __ ,0",,-.; ........... _iII> _ __ ·_O' .... ~_-' ... _ .... ~ ... __ . _ ........ """",.,. ""' ... __ ~t.4. ... < __ _ ._- .. -..... ,,,,, ... ,_ .... , " ..... _h K ... ~",'I ........ 1oC ..... , .... __ ............ ,_.{ ........ , __ ....... """" (0", 10< •• ,"".1 ,,_... r-a"... .......- " .... ' I • .e.". __ O'f.~-'I_'Q ........ ·"_lIl"r __ ~_..c. ff ... ,.,.... ~ 01 I/III4OItI goII , -..s _ ' ..... ~ "'" ..- "..-: ~ ( ... "" P • ,'... "' ",,,,,,,._ ,,,," ..... _ .. ! '" ~ ~., -'1ft; I' 1Oofo<_ ......... '" .-.. ..... .. 1>1 ..... ~ ...-. ...... "",~ _s. ....... ...... ..,_ 100""111 .... '11 1_ ~ ' ...... ~ 'I"........ ... ... _ , ..... ,~ \W; ...... _ ................. "1 ~ ., ...... ..." : I 111 "','I, ~., ... _. ,...,..,.~ ""'" ...... ".~ III _1lM "'''.iIII'~ ~''-__ (oJ .. ~JIIr' •• 'II.....tC ... ..-I.d.I. Iocl, ",-,",,, ... ~_ ~ ............ ,t',.. '-"'~ ._~...t 11 '-",w.o.- ... , .... w.u • ....." to ,. __ ,_" ~ II ....... " , ... "~. , ... ~...- ._ ..... . ..i/ "'- ~ ~II'*' .... " ... Itl\uo. ".. ~i" _,,",·.oM .. 1JiI .. ,~ """",,,,,,,,,.-..N~""" " ..... w, ... __ .. ,....1 ....... , "9 Mr, ... . 1IIt-.,. .. ·" __ ~ .. """ 48 4. At Six Months – Tamil Letter .... "," fS.o,' "t ~ ~"".'" .......... ~,.,o.. ....,. ........ ., _,",' ~t{ •. io.~ 'W" • K- ~"'. ( ..... "" ..... ~~ W"~ __ ~#>"J-" ~,~_ .. "'_ "'(Dill _ ~.k ,wl : .-... ~~ - __ .. VI _,.._- ....... ~ ... , 0;1. tL. _ "-" •• ,.... u1wo< • ..-" ~ .. fit..!~ ... _ ... ,,1""· " I m ~_ ..... ' r..",..t_ .. "" I ,,, ",",1I"lo""",*",UI .... -.o.l"",,,. "", .... __ : N_I M;o,h'D< ~I"""I ... KIt. IUm "'''el\. "cc'~ "". '\",.~" .UOth. rt.<~<1 d,,,,,_ {'",Cf "'''~l 2.'1-", k>r~ M""h, ... ,"1«>0 ~ Nt1d .. .(it,~ .".. ....... ..' D' .= _____ .. ,., B' '" .. $I ....... ~ ..... "~ ~,.. ""'" .. t,... .. "'I/I,oj ;I' ' .... n' """~ ...... M-to •• '"i , .. ,I," 4' I. _ .. "".. ""- ~ ~If'!i»'_'" "",,-ur..... ,,,u. ...-.... . ~"*' ~PJ".~ .",..~~ ~ ..... ~ ................................ AIJ'I~'" 49 Appendix 5: Training Schedule for Employees Within The Training School TRAINGING SCHOOL PROCEDURE > 12'" -Dd}' In'_Day 4'" ·Day S.6"7,8.Days hv"lct ""Om"" , ho,L, '0' 'hcor ".uO"'~ ""'0; [rom ,tI, bl:iulLW", '0 "" ".d .s....to""'~ "",.to "'