Johannesburg - The Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration’s (CCMA) director is to step down in December, the labour relations body announced on Friday.
Nerine Kahn, who has steered the CCMA for a decade, has decided to step down “to pursue other opportunities” after two terms, CCMA governing body chairperson Daniel Dube said.
Dube said Kahn leaves a significant leadership gap in the organisation as under her leadership the organisation had grown steadily over the years, “from 14 offices employing 742 staff, to 22 offices, with a staff compliment of 1,342 full and part-time employees”.
He added that during Kahn’s tenure, the organisation had saved over 100,000 jobs since 2010 through its “job saving initiatives, significantly improved processes, expanded accessibility of services and raised key issues across the labour market”.
Kahn said: “It is with a heavy heart that I step down from an organisation that has engrained itself in me; with a cause that it is so worthy – and has been so effective. I am passionate about the labour market and am seeking other opportunities in which to make a difference in South Africa.”
The CCMA as an organisation, under Kahn’s leadership, has received unqualified audit reports since 2006, and Kahn helped the CCMA to establish the Mediation and Collective Bargaining Department in 2007, and also launched the Labour Dispute Resolution Practice Qualification that was “currently underway in five universities.”
“We regret Ms Kahn’s decision not to make herself available for another term, but respect her decision and the positive change she has delivered to the CCMA over the past ten years,” said Dube.
He added that the “South African labour market is indebted to the contribution she has made to society”.
The CCMA would seek to appoint a new Director during 2016, and has appointed its National Senior Commissioner of Legal Services Cameron Morajane as Acting Director until a suitable candidate to replace Kahn has been found.
African News Agency