At GammaTec NDT Supplies, all employees are given a chance to grow and develop their careers, irrespective of the role that they perform at the company.

Simon Mariti and Gloria Khathatso professional and individual growth at the company stand out as sound examples of GammaTec NDT Supplies’ robust workplace skills plan at work. This prevents employees from languishing in mundane positions without an opportunity to improve their circumstances.

Simon joined the company as a gardener in 2009. As a result of his hard work and effort, he was promoted to work in the packing section of the company’s workshop and later to quality controller, a position that came with significantly more responsibility. With the help of his employer, Simon also recently completed his basic education and, with a National Qualifications Framework (NQF) level 4 education under his belt, he has now made it his goal to become a qualified mechanical technician.

Gloria started working at the company as a general cleaner on a temporary basis. Recognising her potential, Gloria’s manager offered her a permanent position and later promoted her to an administrative position. She has also since completed her basic education and, with the help of her managers, is now deciding on the next step in her lifelong learning journey. With an NQF level 4 education, there are many fields of study that she can pursue that will complement her administrative role.

Like so many other South Africans, Simon and Gloria were unable to complete their basic education due to their circumstances, not least of which is poverty. Many young citizens are prevented from accessing a quality education because their families lack the financial means to send them to good schools. These families also tend to undervalue education favouring work instead because it supplements family incomes, an attitude that contributes to high school dropout rates in pooper communities.

Simon had to help his father take care of his younger siblings and pay for the family home when his mother passed away. To substitute the lost income that his mother would bring home, he performed menial work that did not require much in terms of skills. This left him with very little time to focus on finishing school.

As a young mother at the time, Gloria had to complement her husband’s income and take care of a baby. Yet, like Simon, Gloria knew that the time would come when she would have to complete her schooling if she ever wanted to escape the “poverty trap”. They both, therefore, made this their life goal.

Not many adults get given a real second chance to complete their basic education. All too often, they have to attend evening adult education and training (AET) classes at their closest community centres where attendance and progression through the four levels are low due to a myriad of reasons. There are still many complex challenges that beset these programmes that need to be overcome to help address high functional illiteracy in the country.

Simon and Gloria were registered on GammaTec NDT Supplies’ adult literacy and numeracy training programme, facilitated by Triple E Training, industry’s foremost provider of AET. They were, thus, given a solid chance to succeed in completing their education.

Not only would they attend classes facilitated by an educator with specific experience teaching adults, but lessons would also be held in the workplace and during workhours. This meant that Simon and Gloria would not have to commute to AET classes after work. It would, therefore, be easier for them to attend all the lessons, especially considering that, as parents, they also had personal responsibilities at the end of the working day. It is also easier to concentrate during the day as opposed to after a full day of work. By facilitating classes in the workplace, employees are also able to practice the knowledge that they have gained when they finish class. This also helps them to retain new information, especially when they see its relevance. 

Simon and Gloria started the programme in 2014, alternating between literacy and numeracy training every year.

Following an assessment of their existing foundational skills, they were placed at level 1B for both subjects. In December 2024, they passed their final exams. Thereafter, Simon and Gloria completed Triple E Training’s foundational learning competence training which accelerated their progression from a NQF level 1 to a matric equivalent.   

It was a very proud moment for both employees whose achievement were celebrated by company management, as well as their colleagues, family and friends.

“A weight has been lifted off my shoulders. It is not easy for someone to navigate modern life when you struggle to read, write and do basic maths, and it can be soul destroying especially if you know that you can do so much more with your life if just given the chance. When my higher-ups registered me on the company’s adult literacy and numeracy training programme, they knew I had the grit and determination to succeed and, therefore, would not let them down,” Simon says.

Gloria says, “It’s never easy to learn while also holding down a fulltime job and taking care of a family but, together with the support that I received from Triple E Training and my employer, I persevered because I have always understood the value of a proper education. I just never had a real chance to go back to school. Therefore, I constantly remind my children of the importance of completing matric, and know that, by me achieving an NQF level 4 education, I have set a good example for them.”

Marco Maree, a Training & Development Advisor of Triple E Training, congratulates Simon and Gloria for their achievement and GammaTec NDT Supplies for the role that the company is playing in upskilling functionally illiterate South African adults.

“There are still about 4-million functionally illiterate grownups in South Africa. Industries are in a very good position to help transfer basic education skills to these individuals, either through workplace or community training programmes. This is because they know exactly where the gaps are – even among those employees who have completed schooling. As GammaTec NDT Supplies has demonstrated, companies are among the most knowledgeable developers and implementers of workplace training. This is evidenced by the success of their adult literacy and numeracy training programmes that are facilitated at the workplace and around work schedules,” he concludes.