With over 7 million South Africans unemployed at the end of the first quarter of 2021, the need to connect people to jobs is now more important than ever. This is why Vodacom is launching a comprehensive support package for jobseekers.
Combining discounted voice and data offers, continued access to learning and skills with Udemy, access to six zero-rated job sites and its Future Jobs Finder tool – all housed under the ConnectU portal – Vodacom is committed to helping jobseekers go Further Together.
Vodacom is also donating Facebook advertising to jobseekers, helping them to promote their profiles using Facebook banner advertising to reach hiring managers across the country.
“Due to the pandemic, half a million South Africans lost their jobs in 2020 according to Stats SA. This has made the means to access opportunities even more critical, from finding a new job and reskilling, to ensuring your Curriculum Vitae (CV) / Resume is relevant for future skills. We have seen the power of technology help many of our customers find jobs and get back on their feet. Now we want to create awareness for those with limited means. We know that the majority of job seekers are under financial pressure, so our jobseekers.connected initiative has been designed to help customers find new roles, develop and learn new skills and explore new career opportunities,” says Jorge Mendes, Chief Officer for Consumer Business at Vodacom.
The package includes:
Connectivity offers: Special connectivity offers to keep jobseekers connected and support them while they are searching for a new career opportunity. Customers can access personalised, discounted offers through the Just4You platform as well as zero-rated access to select job portals to ensure that access does not come from data allowances.
Profile promotion: Donating Facebook advertising and media investment spend to jobseekers, enabling them to promote their profiles and highlight their CV with suitable potential employers.
New Skills: Exclusive partnership with the global e-learning marketplace Udemy providing access to 700+ free, curated courses on personal growth, productivity and professional skills, and essential tech skills. This will be complemented with a new category of learning for career development and other local partnerships for e-learning where available.
Job Opportunities: Through the ConnectU portal, Vodacom customers can access multiple zero-rated job sites to find opportunities that match their profiles. Vodacom’s Future Jobs Finder tool is available to help users of all ages and backgrounds to find digital or technology job opportunities and build a Curriculum Vitae (CV) / Resume. For jobseekers, whose background are in non-technology fields, Future Jobs Finder also helps identify transferable skills and strengths, giving recommendations on tech professions and e-learning suited to people’s backgrounds and aptitudes. This is the first initiative following the launch of Vodacom’s new brand positioning – ‘Further Together’– demonstrating how partnership between technology and society can build a better future.
“Our ConnectU platform launched in April 2020 sees over 250,000 customers accessing the Jobs portal every month. With this campaign, we aim to create visibility and awareness related to our support packages and we encourage our customers to take advantage of them, added Mendes.
“We understand that some jobseekers need qualifications in order to pursue some of the job opportunities in the marketplace, to this end, our VodaBucks Rewards Programme in partnership with Boston City Campus will award 15 lucky winners with bursaries to the value of R20 000 each. We recognise that Vodacom’s role in society is more vital than ever, and we are committed to building a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable digital society where everyone is connected and has the potential to thrive,” concludes Mendes.
ConnectU zero rated job sites
1. Careers24
2. Career Junction
3. Giraffe
4. Jobmail
5. Youth Employment Services (YES)
6. SA Learnerships
