Statement from ATE chairman

*ASSOCIATION OF TANZANIA EMPLOYERS (ATE)*

*PRESS CONFERENCE*

*ADDRESS BY ATE CHAIRPERSON *

*MR. ADVOCATE CORNELIUS KARIWA *

*2nd October TUESDAY 2012.*

Dear Members of the media,

On behalf of the Association of Tanzania Employers (ATE) I wish to welcome
you to ATE’s old office, which is now used as a board room and for meetings
such as this.

We have called you here today to officially launch the Employer of the Year
Award (EYA) event. This is an annual event organised by ATE which is geared
towards promoting and encouraging best practices in Human Resources
Management in a bid to enhance organizational productivity and
competitiveness.

As the voice of employers in Tanzania, it is our duty to promote harmonious
labour relations at workplaces as well as best practices in human resources
management for smooth running of businesses which are essential for
increased labour productivity and competitiveness.

This will be the fifth event since its introduction back in 2005. However
this year’s event is different compared to the previous events. After four
consecutive years of organizing EYA, it was seen logical to review the
event so that it cuts across all sectors taking into consideration the
needs and priorities of different sectors. This years’ event has addition
of five new award categories which will expand EYA winners’ base. Moreover
all participants will be issued with certificate of participation.

ATE recognizes that continuous improvement of Human Resources at the
workplace is paramount for making Tanzania economy competitive at local,
regional and global level.

The event is categorised into two main parts, the first part is the survey
which will be done by an independent Consultancy firm- PAMOMA Ltd, which
have been selected after competitive bidding and the second part will be
the awarding event which is scheduled to be done in the second week of
December this year.

In the survey all critical areas of the HR Management of the participating
organisations are assessed ranging from primary benefits, secondary
benefits, working conditions, training and development among others.

We encourage all members of ATE to participate so as to benchmark their
organizational practices and that of their counterpart. They will also be
able to find out what their peers are doing to keep their employees
motivated and happy on the job among others pertinent HR issues.

* *

*AWARD CATEGORIES*

*1. **OVERALL*

ü Overall EYA (Gold Award)

ü 1st Runner-up EYA (Silver Award)

ü 2nd Runner up EYA (Bronze Award)

*2. **SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZE (SMEs) AWARDS *

ü Overall Winner (Gold)

ü 1st Runner-Up (Silver)

ü 2nd Runner-up (Bronze)

*3. **AWARD IN TERMS OF SIZES*

Ø Best Small Enterprise

Ø Best Medium Enterprise

Ø Best Large Enterprise

*4. **CRITERIA AWARDS*

* I. *Leadership and Governance *(NEW)*

II. Human Resource Management Function *(NEW)*

III. CSR and Ethical Practices

*IV. *Quality and Productivity *(NEW)*

V. Workforce Focus *(NEW)*

*5. **SUB-CATEGORY AWARDS*

ü General HR Policy and Practice

ü Staff Training and Development

ü Performance Management

ü Pay and Benefits

ü Employee Relations

ü HIV/AIDS Interventions

ü Occupational Health and Safety

ü Equal Employment Opportunities and Diversity**

ü *Disability Inclusiveness (NEW) *

Ladies and gentlemen of the press,

We wish that you convey the message that it is important for companies to
participate in this event as it promotes best human resource practices and
ultimately making our economy more competitive.

Thank you for listening