Workers’ Experiences of RPL in South Africa: some implications for redress, equity and transformation

Abstract

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) has played a pivotal role in ensuring that RPL assessment be included as a key principle of the reforming education and training system in South Africa, as RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) is seen to be an important mechanism for redressing past injustices and inequalities. A number of COSATU affiliates have participated in RPL assessment processes within their industries with the expectation that significant numbers of workers would be upgraded, would receive more pay, or would have increased opportunities for training. By and large, these expectations have not been met. Against such a backdrop, COSATU embarked on a participatory research process for developing implementation policy so that RPL might serve its intended redress and transformation agenda. This paper presents some of the policy issues which emerged during the research process by drawing on the RPL experiences of two affiliates. It concludes with some worrisome realities about the extent to which RPL on its own can serve a social justice agenda.