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3. TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION FROM THE BUSINESS SECTOR

In cases in which union or sectorial groups share concern about the development of their human resources, experiences in training, standardization and competency certification are on the increase. These are being developed and applied in the sphere of the sector itself, and are supported by the conviction that they are useful in the pursuit of quality, competitiveness and better labour performance. In many cases these experiences have a direct connection with models of human resources management, and they are applied in phases like selection, training and promotion. Cited below are some experiences which have come to our attention in various ways. Obviously this list is not exhaustive, it is merely a sample for purely didactic purposes.

In Argentina, since 2001, a program of labour competencies has been carried forward with support from the Ministry of Labour and the IDB. This project is oriented to fostering the establishment of sectorial systems of standardization, training and competency certification in the private sector. The project covers four sectors: automobiles, foodstuffs, graphic printing and mechanical engineering. In each sector the project is being developed by an association that represents management (the Gutenberg Foundation for the graphic printing sector, and the Association of Metallurgical Industries of Rosario for the mechanical engineering sector) or one that represents the workers (the Union of Automobile Mechanics and Associated Auto Transport Workers (SMATA), and the Argentine Federation of Pastry, Cake, Ice Cream, Pizza and Biscuit Makers (FATPCHPyA in Spanish) in conjunction with the Union of Pastry, Cake, Ice Cream, Pizza and Biscuit Makers of Buenos Aires (SOPCPHyA) in the foodstuffs sector. These are two initiatives originating in management associations and two from workers associations.

Labour Competencies Project - Argentina

The general objective of the program is to establish the institutional and methodological bases to develop a national system for the certification of labour competencies, through the realization of pilot experiences of certification and training based on the focus of labour competencies.

An outstanding characteristic of this project stems from the participation of social actors who are directly involved in training and development in the sector in question. The Gutenberg Foundation, for example, is an institution in the graphic printing sector which is specialized in training in which competency standards constitute an input to update the training offer.

The Brazilian Maintenance Association (ABRAMAN) is a good example of the certification of competencies. This organization initiated a process of worker certification some years ago, with advisory help from Cinterfor. The objective was to improve performance and management competitiveness under the documented conviction that significant dysfunctions in maintenance eventually impair efficiency and business productivity.

ABRAMAN assembled the different competencies required for efficient performance in the area of maintenance, and formulated a National Program of Qualification and Certification (PNCC in Spanish) with the aim of transforming the quality and productivity of the maintenance services in the country by qualifying professionals for these activities, and thus meeting the needs of the maintenance market in Brazil.

This program is managed by a National Qualification and Certification Council made up of 35 companies and advised by a Qualification and Certification Committee, which acts as the executive organ of the system. At the bottom level there are qualification and examination centers in charge of certifying workers, and care is taken that the certification should not be done in the center where the training took place. For the training itself, SENAI and SENAC training centers are used.

Certification in the maintenance area
Occupational certification in the PNCC has the following characteristics:

• It is carried out by a third party organization; the agent of certification does not do the vocational training
• There is tripartite management (union, company management, training institution)
• Its ultimate aim is the exercise of the occupation
• The examination centers (certification centers) are audited by the PNCC to authorize their operation
  

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