This project is a survey research work, which investigates the perceptions and implications of the Skills Development Act on the service industry in Durban. The study contained a qualitative and quantitative section, through the use of structured and open questionnaires. Target interviewees/ recipients of questionnaires were CEDs, financial managers or their designated representatives, who play a key role in making investment decisions in their respective companies. The sample took the form of a stratified judgment sample. The distribution of the companies in the sample was according to size, with an attempt made to reflect as accurately as possible the proportion of companies in the sector that are small, medium and large. The number of employees determined the categorisation by size. For the purposes of this study, a large company will have between 65 and 100 employees, a medium sized company will have between 30 and 64 employees. A small company will have between one and 29 employees. Because service sector companies tend to be small, this classification departs somewhat from that used in the National Skills Development Strategy. Information derived from the questionnaires and interviews were analysed using the SPSS package. This served as the basis for the discussion of findings and the recommendations, which appear in last chapter of this work.

Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002