South Africa’s building sector is moving toward faster, more intelligent and more accurate systems. The Building Industry Bargaining Council (BIBC), which supports more than 3 500 employers and 30 000 employees across the Cape Peninsula, has spent the past four years modernising benefit administration. The shift from paper and manual work to digital tools is changing how employers and employees interact with the Council.
From Handwritten Records to Digital Accuracy
For most of its history, the BIBC relied on handwritten forms, physical stamps and manual updates. Even in the early 2020s, attendance registers arrived by fax, email or scanned notes. These mixed formats created lengthy delays. Staff had to capture thousands of records each month. Payments without reference numbers further slowed work, and benefit submissions for unregistered workers led to frequent errors.
The process needed a complete overhaul.
A Strategic Shift After COVID-19
After the COVID-19 shutdown, BIBC leadership placed digital transformation at the core of its strategy. A dedicated Business Analyst was appointed to redesign the benefit administration process. This led to the launch of the Employer Employee Interface System (eesi© 1.0) in 2023.
eesi© 1.0 replaced handwritten forms with a single digital workflow. Employers submitted all attendance and payroll data in one standard format. This change improved accuracy, cut processing delays and strengthened compliance tracking.
The Next Step: eesi© 2.0
Two significant challenges remained. Employers still submitted benefits for unregistered workers, and unmatched deposits slowed down processing. To solve this, the BIBC launched eesi© 2.0. It was tested in February 2025 and rolled out across the industry in June.
eesi© 2.0 requires validated employee data before submissions. This prevents incorrect entries and improves the speed and accuracy of benefit processing.
A Smart Payment Gateway for Instant Accuracy
The BIBC’s final major upgrade arrived on 13 August 2025, introducing a Payment Gateway. The system redirects employers to make the correct payment immediately. It removes problems such as missing reference numbers, overpayments, underpayments and unmatched deposits. Transactions are now processed faster, with precise tracking throughout.
Adjusting to Change
As with any new system, the transition brought its own learning curve. Some employers found the changes tough, while many others welcomed the efficiency. The BIBC worked closely with industry partners to resolve issues quickly.
Danie Hattingh from the BIBC says the digital shift reflects the Council’s commitment to improving service delivery: faster submissions, fewer errors and better transparency benefit both employers and employees.
A Modern System Serving Thousands
The BIBC now supports employers and employees with tools built for the pace of today’s building industry. The move from paper files to fully digital systems marks one of the most significant changes in its history.
As the Council prepares to distribute annual holiday and bonus benefits to more than 30 000 workers, the upgraded systems are expected to deliver faster and more accurate processing.
Hattingh says the focus is clear. “We want reliable systems that support employers, protect employees and strengthen the industry. These upgrades help us deliver on that promise.”
