Belay, a privately owned and proudly South African company, fully supports the ideals of broad-based BBBEE. We consciously believe that in building our business and our community, we help to build a better South Africa. As a level 5 BBB EE contributor we have invested heavily in initiatives guided by the BEE Charter. With our commitment to our people, the community at large, and our country, Belay achieved the level 5 BBB EE contributor status by August 2009, far sooner than anticipated. Having this status gives all our clients a 100% BEE Procurement recognition for using our services.

Policy

It is the policy of the company not to engage in discrimination against or harassment of any person employed or seeking employment with Belay on the basis of race, colour, origin, religion, sex, physical or mental disability, medical condition, ancestry, marital status, or sexual orientation.

Employment Equity and Affirmative Action

An integral part of our business focus is to build equal employment opportunities for qualified but under-represented segments of the population. We are committed and dedicated to a programme of affirmative action in recruitment, employment, assignment and promotion to increase the numbers of previously disadvantaged individuals at all levels of the work force.

Corporate Social responsibility

Belay has a policy of supporting initiatives focused on community upliftment and is actively involved in a number of CSR programmes.

The Gracious Academy

The Gracious Academy provides computer literacy skills for previously disadvantaged individuals in the rural community of Saulspoort in the Northwest Province. The academy grants 25% of seating to indigent individuals, thus empowering them to seek active employment and in turn assist their own families and communities. We initially upgraded an old school hostel into a training facility with offices, training rooms, stores, and ablution facilities. We then provided the academy with PC’s fully configured with Microsoft Office 2007 to enable Gracious Academy to train their pupils in the latest available technology. Belay also assists by donating funds for operating expenses, and employs two of the staff on a full-time basis.

Kids Care and Support Trust

Kids Care and Support Trust aims to provide care, support and protection for children who have lost their parents through HIV/Aids and/or whose primary care givers are terminally ill. Belay sponsored a Boot Camp for 60 children between the ages 8-14 to help the children work through the grieving process and build resilience through memory work. In addition, Belay volunteers time of our employees to actively involve themselves in these camps.

The Haven Care Centre

The Haven Care Centre is an inter-denominational organisation, which, with the financial assistance of Belay, offers food hamper deliveries to indigent families and pensioners. The centre also assists with the transportation and funding of toddlers and school children and provides Soup Kitchens.

Astri Dei Annual Cycle Tour

The Astri Dei annual cycle tour raises funds for tracksuits, runners, and T-shirts for previously disadvantage children. In addition to making a substantial contribution to this worthy cause, Vincent Coetzee and Nic Pieterse (Belay Directors) cycled with the Astri Dei team from Suntherland to Pretoria, a total of 1480km over 8 days, to help build awareness among our corporate community. A total of 3,500 tracksuits were distributed along the route. The team visited disadvantaged communities in Britstown, Prieska, Kimberly, and Bloemfontein.

Skills Development

Our commitment to transformation through skills development is actively driven through ongoing training and development of our staff. We believe our success to date is due to our outstanding individuals and therefore invest significantly in training. We strive to ensure that our employees attend relevant and uplifting training and development programmes, which not only add to their technological capabilities but also empower them to develop a wide range of business skills.

Since 01 July 2009, 16 employees have achieved a Microsoft certification. This brings our total number of Microsoft certified staff to 49.

In 2009/2010, Belay appointed 4 previously disadvantaged individuals as interns through the Microsoft Internship Programme. The programme involves taking the learner through a set of online training courses to qualify as a certified Microsoft developer, while also learning the theoretical and practical requirements of working on client facing customer service delivery projects. This helps them to understand how the theory is practically implemented and to understand the complexities of solving the business problems that our customers experience.