| 1. |
You are again requested to give serious consideration to the request to nominate officials for the above-mentioned special award. (Refer to Circular 0010/2004 of 19 February 2004.) |
| 2. |
As only one award per month can be made to an employee or group of employees of the Western Cape Education Department (WCED), it must be for really outstanding achievement. Past experience has, however, shown that each month it is possible to consider at least one person or group for the award. |
| 3. |
In view of the above, a nomination must provide evidence of one, or a combination, of the following:
Improvement in, amongst others, methods, procedures, equipment, tools and/or work circumstances Improvement in the quality of products and/or service Outstanding achievements like a beautiful garden and/or neat school grounds Reduction in costs and/or the elimination of waste, for example, in the use of stationery, stock and material Improved safety and security precautions and/or conductText here. A special or complex and demanding task which, besides the normal duties of the person(s), was undertaken with extra-ordinary vigour and completed successfully Any other improvement, saving or extra-ordinary work performance or service
Examples of best practice, are attached as Appendix IX.
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| 4. |
Assessment criteria and weighting |
| 4.1 |
In future cases must be assessed according to the following criteria and weighting:
Merit (10 points) Practical value (10 points) Proven advantages (10 points) Effort and sacrifice (10 points)
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| 4.2 |
The final mark is awarded out of a total of 40, and an official or group must score at least 80% (i.e. 32 out of 40). Score sheets (Appendix V for individuals and Appendix VI for groups) are attached. |
| 5. |
As mentioned in paragraph 2 an award can also be made to a group of employees. |
| 5.1 |
The qualifying requirements and the criteria according to which a group will be assessed, do not differ fundamentally from those used to assess an individual. A nomination for a group is made on a prescribed form (Appendix III), and the requirements are the same as those for an individual. |
| 5.2 |
Group nominations must be accompanied by a full exposition of the responsibilities (per individual) that were applicable during the process. For this purpose Appendix IV, which must include, amongst others, the following information, must be used:
A summary of what the task or project involved An exposition of the respective responsibilities of the officials involved in the project An assessment or allocation of marks in respect of each official’s contribution to the end result
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| 6. |
The following apply to the rewarding of individuals or the members of a group:
An award will be in the form of a cash amount determined by the Superintendent-General. The basis on which the cash amount must be distributed to members of a group must be provided in the motivation. An award may not exceed the value of an individual’s basic monthly pensionable salary. An award is accompanied by a certificate signed by the Superintendent-General.
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| 7. |
In order to distribute awards fairly among departmental employees, it remains the policy to consider only nominations from a specific area in a specific month. From January 2005 nominations from the various Education Management and Development Centres (EMDCs), their districts and Head Office will be awaited as follows:
January 2005 WEST COAST/WINELANDS
February 2005 METROPOLE SOUTH
March 2005 BREEDE RIVER/OVERBERG
April 2005 METROPOLE CENTRAL
May 2005 METROPOLE NORTH
June 2005 HEAD OFFICE
July 2005 SOUTHERN CAPE/KAROO
August 2005 METROPOLE EAST
September 2005 WEST COAST/WINELANDS
October 2005 METROPOLE SOUTH
November 2005 BREEDE RIVER/OVERBERG
December 2005 METROPOLE CENTRAL |
| 8. |
As it is extremely important that nominations should be submitted timeously, you are again requested to ensure that a nomination for a specific month reaches this office by no later than the 15th of the preceding month. For example, the nomination for March must reach this office before 15 February. The 10th of the month preceding the granting of the award must therefore be regarded as the cut-off date. |
| 9. |
Please note that all public service personnel attached to an EMDC, an institution within an EMDC's service area or Head Office, must be considered within a specific month as indicated above. |
| 10. |
Reports on persons or groups of persons found worthy of nomination must be submitted by institutions to their respective EMDCs, where the nominations will be sifted by a committee under the guidance of the director and/or the administrative head. Once the preliminary sifting has been done, the selected reports from institutions and EMDC personnel, must be submitted, with a recommendation as to the person or group who should receive it, to the Personnel Office at Head Office for final consideration. |
| 11. |
In view of possible enquiries, a record must be kept of the discussions during the preliminary sifting process at EMDC or Head Office level. |
| 12. |
The following documents which have bearing on the process and/or must be used, are attached:
Appendix I: Format in respect of the nomination of an individual Appendix II: Format in respect of the job description of an individual Appendix III: Format in respect of the nomination of a group Appendix IV: Format in respect of a group nomination (full description of the responsibilities per individual) Appendix V: Format in respect of a score sheet for an individual Appendix VI: Format in respect of a score sheet for a group Appendix VII: Section 37(2)(c) of the Public Service Act 1994 (as amended) Appendix VIII: Details of personnel who received awards last year Appendix IX: Examples of best practice.
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| 13. |
It cannot be over-emphasised that an achievement must be really outstanding before a person or group can be considered for this award. |
| 14. |
As the award is applicable to all public service personnel at all post levels below senior management level (salary level 13), you are requested to inform all employees at your institution or in your component of the contents of this circular. |
| 15. |
Your co-operation will be appreciated. |
SIGNED: J.H. HURTER
HEAD: EDUCATION
DATE: 2005:01:04
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