The South African economy desperately requires an injection from small manufacturing enterprises that are productive and highly organized - hence the need to identify suitable productivity measurement approaches for use in these enterprises. The following research question was formulated: Which productivity approach( es) is (are) generally most suitable for small manufacturing enterprises in the steel and engineering industry of South Africa? The following directions of research were identified: (1) A literature search revealed 12 productivity measurement approaches. The theory of each is discussed in detail. (2) An empirical search was performed to establish the requirements of industry. This process is fully discussed. The results of both the literature and empirical searches were used to develop a list of criteria. These criteria were compared with each of the approaches, and only three were found to conform to these requirements. The results of this comparison provided the answer to the research question. / Department of Business Management / M.Com (Business Management)

M. Tech. (Labour Relations Management, Faculty of Management Sciences), Vaal University of Technology. / Industrial accidents have proved to be more prevalent and costly than anticipated especially in developing countries including South Africa. Occupational accidents have direct and indirect cost implications for an organisation as well as society. Governments in many countries have tried to implement legislation to try and curb the scourge of industrial accidents. The primary purpose of this research was to investigate the level of employee adherence to the Occupational, Health and Safety Act (OHSA) 85 of 1993 in the steel manufacturing sector. This research provided an overview of various factors that influences employee’s level of understanding and adherence to the OHSA. This included factors such as information and training in health and safety; employee safety perception, employee safety awareness, employee safety adherence, employee behaviour with regard to health and safety, the role of the union in health and safety issues, accident reporting mechanism, and employee’s perceptions of the influence of rewards on health and safety. A structured questionnaire consisting of closed-ended questions was developed and disseminated in order to gather relevant data. Given the scale of the research, a quantitative research method was implemented. The population for the study strictly consisted of employees working in the steel manufacturing sector. A purposive sampling technique was selected. Statistical Package for Social Sciences 22.0 (SPSS) was used to analyse the data. The sample size of (n) =165 employees was involved in the study. The response rate for the total was (98.5%). Descriptive, frequency, correlation, regression and means analysis was employed in this study. The results of the study indicated that majority of the employees were aware and adhered with the requirements of the OHSA with the organisation. It was suggested that strong stake holder partnerships between unions, employers and employees be formulated. The state should reinforce the Department of Labour inspectorate by giving it more powers to be able to execute its task meritoriously and efficiently. It further suggested that the state must rapidly focus on recruiting and training more health and safety labour inspectors to ensure appropriate enforcement of health and safety regulations. Lastly it is advisable to create and engrave a health and safety culture within the organisation that focuses on highly on employee involvement and mutual trust. The proposed recommendation for the study, limitations and the conclusion of the study were outlined in Chapter 5.

This study was designed to determine the employment opportunities in the steel fabrication industry of the Greater Fort Worth Metropolitan Area, and to ascertain what skills and knowledge were required of the prospective employee and which of these skills were being taught in the Industrial Arts metalworking laboratories. The Machine Metalworking I & II curriculum was established and related to information gained through a questionnaire sent to participating steel fabrication firms. The study was used to determine present and anticipated employment opportunities in the steel fabrication industry and aid in evaluating the curriculum of Machine Metalworking I & II as it relates to the employment requirements of the steel fabrication industry.

The South African economy desperately requires an injection from small manufacturing enterprises that are productive and highly organized - hence the need to identify suitable productivity measurement approaches for use in these enterprises. The following research question was formulated: Which productivity approach( es) is (are) generally most suitable for small manufacturing enterprises in the steel and engineering industry of South Africa? The following directions of research were identified: (1) A literature search revealed 12 productivity measurement approaches. The theory of each is discussed in detail. (2) An empirical search was performed to establish the requirements of industry. This process is fully discussed. The results of both the literature and empirical searches were used to develop a list of criteria. These criteria were compared with each of the approaches, and only three were found to conform to these requirements. The results of this comparison provided the answer to the research question. / Department of Business Management / M.Com (Business Management)

<p align="justify">Partant du mouvement managérial de remise en cause de l'organisation classique aussi appelée bureaucratie mécaniste ou encore entreprise taylorienne et fordienne qui a pris vigueur au début des années 80, l'architecture de cette thèse se structure en trois parties étroitement interdépendantes.</p><p><p><p align="justify">La première partie porte sur l'innovation managériale, c'est-à-dire sur les doctrines et les outils de gestion qui, à partir de la fin du siècle passé et du début de ce siècle, ont façonné l'histoire du management. Le regard porté conduit à relativiser voire à rompre avec certains lieux communs. Ainsi force est de constater que l'entreprise classique a fait l'objet au cours du temps d'un certain nombre de critiques, d'un certain nombre de tentatives d'aménagement voire même de dépassement. Notons toutefois que, par rapport aux tentatives précédentes, celle qui a débuté au début des années 80 apparaît beaucoup plus profonde au niveau des intentions et surtout beaucoup plus largement partagée par les managers. Par ailleurs, la lecture avancée insiste sur la dimension cyclique de l'histoire du management. Enfin, concernant la période actuelle, l'idée de mode est réfutée au profit de celle d'un construit étalé dans le temps.</p><p><p><p align="justify">La deuxième partie est consacrée à une étude de cas portant sur une grande entreprise sidérurgique. L'analyse faite s'articule autour du concept de bloc sociotechnologique dont la paternité revient à Pierre Bouvier (Le travail au quotidien: une démarche socio anthropologique, Paris, PUF, 1989). Dans cette optique, l'histoire récente de l'entreprise peut être posée comme celle du passage d'un bloc à un autre, c'est-à-dire d'une articulation relativement cohérente entre des variables différentes sociale, économique, politique, technologique. à une autre. Pour le faire ressortir, trois histoires connexes ont été relatées et analysées en détail:</p><p><p><p align="justify">La première histoire est micro-économique. Elle fait une large place à la crise comme élément de rupture par rapport au passé et aux restructurations successives qu'elle a entraînées. Sur la durée, celles-ci sont particulièrement révélatrices de l'évolution des rapports de force entre les acteurs. Elles mettent également en lumière les "dégâts" humains et sociaux provoqués par la modernisation.</p><p><p><p align="justify">La deuxième histoire est relative à l'évolution technologique. En sidérurgie, comme dans la plupart des secteurs traditionnels, les nouvelles technologies de l'information et de la communication sont venues véritablement bouleverser les univers de travail. A ce niveau, l'analyse s'est centrée sur les multiples effets socio-organisationnels liés à l'informatisation des outils.</p><p><p><p align="justify">La troisième et dernière a trait à la modernisation managériale. Dans le cas particulier de l'entreprise, elle débute à la fin des années 70 avec l'arrivée d'un nouveau directeur général. Toutefois, ce n'est qu'au début des années 80 que la volonté de renouveau managérial commence réellement à se concrétiser avec le développement des cercles de qualité et de progrès. Par la suite, l'entreprise ne cessera d'innover. Ainsi, vers la fin des années 80, la direction adopte la qualité totale comme mode de management. Dans ce cadre, elle multiplie les nouveaux concepts et les nouveaux outils de gestion: plan d'amélioration de la qualité, assurance qualité, topomaintenance, statistical process control, prime de progrès, etc. Enfin, après avoir réalisé d'importantes économies et fiabilisé son processus de production, vers le milieu des années 90, la direction témoigne d'une volonté de repenser son mode d'organisation et de gestion du personnel. Ainsi, par exemple, il est de plus en plus question d'organisation apprenante ou qualifiante.</p><p><p><p align="justify">Chacune de ces innovations a fait l'objet d'une présentation et d'une analyse socio-organisationnelle approfondie. Sans entrer dans les détails, soulignons cependant que la mise en oeuvre d'une nouvelle organisation du travail et d'une gestion individualisée des carrières vient en quelque sorte finaliser l'émergence d'un nouveau bloc sociotechnologique.</p><p><p><p align="justify">Quant à la troisième partie, elle est consacrée à une lecture théorique de l'innovation managériale à partir des concepts de l'analyse stratégique. Toutefois, la mobilisation du cadre théorique développé par Michel Crozier et Erhard Friedberg a également conduit à en souligner certaines limites dont le rejet de la dimension historique de l'organisation et de ses acteurs.</p><p><p> / Doctorat en sciences sociales, Orientation sociologie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Founded in 1928, Iscor was intended to make South Africa self sufficient in the provision of steel while providing employment for poor whites. Economic considerations prevailed when Iscor began replacing expensive white labour with cheaper black labour. From 1934 to 1948 black labour was employed to curtail costs. While being replaced by black labour, white employees' salaries and fringe benefits remained better than those of their black colleagues. Affordable houses were provided for white employees while blacks were housed in overcrowded compounds. No medical or pension benefits were made available to black employees or their families, while white employees enjoyed both. White employees were provided with what were arguabley the finest sports facilities in the country while black facilities were neglected. With the National Party victory in 1948 more emphasis was placed on the employment of Afrikaans speaking white South Africans at the expense of blacks and English speaking whites. / History / M.A. (History)

Founded in 1928, Iscor was intended to make South Africa self sufficient in the provision of steel while providing employment for poor whites. Economic considerations prevailed when Iscor began replacing expensive white labour with cheaper black labour. From 1934 to 1948 black labour was employed to curtail costs. While being replaced by black labour, white employees' salaries and fringe benefits remained better than those of their black colleagues. Affordable houses were provided for white employees while blacks were housed in overcrowded compounds. No medical or pension benefits were made available to black employees or their families, while white employees enjoyed both. White employees were provided with what were arguabley the finest sports facilities in the country while black facilities were neglected. With the National Party victory in 1948 more emphasis was placed on the employment of Afrikaans speaking white South Africans at the expense of blacks and English speaking whites. / History / M.A. (History)