It is becoming increasingly important for employers to invest in the training of their employees if they want to tackle labour problems and sustain the country's economic growth and social progress.

This is the message the Federation of Employer's Association of Seychelles (FEAS) hopes that the around 40 participants attending a three-day seminar on Human Resources Management will grasp and implement in their respective departments.

The seminar is taking place at the Exile Club in Victoria and was launched on Wednesday August 20,  by the Minister for Social Affairs and Employment, Mr Dolor Ernesta. The opening ceremony was also marked by speeches from Mrs Josianne Moustache, the chairperson of FEAS and Mr Antoine Robinson, the general secretary of the Seychelles Federation of Worker's Union (SFWU).

The participants were told that investments made to upgrade the skills and knowledge of workforce could increase workers' productivity, improve the enterprise's competitiveness in the global market, raise profits, generate high economic growth and improve the standard of living in general.

The seminar, organised with the support of the International Labour Organisation's (ILO) Bureau for Employers, stemmed from concerns expressed by both the FEAS and SFWU about the increase in cases where several businesses and departments were not taking human resources management seriously.

"In some cases managers and employers forget that people have to be managed far better than any other resources and there exists the tendency to take people for granted. As a result many skilled people are forced to leave in search of more enabling working environments elsewhere," Mr Robinson pointed out in his address.

He called on employers in both the private and public sectors to dedicate more time, effort and resources in setting up staff training programme and render their working environment more attractive to talented school leavers and other job seekers.

Stressing on the importance of staff training, Mrs Moustache said it was clear that "it is people, and not capital or material resources, that will determine the profitability and future of a business."

Given the numerous challenges of today's global business climate, the employees needed a sense of purpose and direction as well as a vision to energise and guide them, she added.

In his speech, Minister Ernesta further underlined the challenges of today's labour force regarding the requirements and conditions, which he said called for more dynamic processes to adapt to them.

"The shift to more liberal, market-based economies, the upward skill bias of technological change, new ways of organising work and the growing incidence of unemployment, poverty, and social exclusion have fundamentally changed the context between human resources development and the concept of employability," Minister Ernesta explained.

"And such changes means that new ways must be sought so that our workers can maintain their productivity while retaining their full human rights," he added.

The seminar will see the presentations of several papers, to be done mainly by Mr Gilbert Sultan-Beaudoin, the executive secretary of FEAS and other experts from this organisation. Human resources policy formulation, manpower planning and audit, job evaluation, training needs assessment and performance appraisal, are just some of the issues to be presented and discussed during the three day's work.

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