An assessment of recruitment practices for food handlers into the National Schools Nutrition Programme (NSNP): A case of the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), Johannesburg North District

The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) is one of the food security programmes of the South African government that strives to provide proper nutrition meals to all public primary and secondary school learners nationwide. To implement the programme, NSNP hires food handlers to prepare and deliver meals to students on a daily basis. However, in terms of public sector human resource management, it is unclear how these food handlers are recruited and hired into the programme. This paper aimed at assessing the recruitment practices of food handlers into the NSNP. The paper employed qualitative research methodology using semi-structured interviews and documentary review as two data collection methods. Moreover, the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) Johannesburg North District was chosen as a case study for the research strategy. The study reviewed pertinent literature, conducted semi-structured interviews to collect data. The data was analysed using thematic content analysis in order to qualitatively examine the data gathered. The paper's findings demonstrated that the GDE has a plan in place to oversee the NSNP's food handler recruitment practices, and that plan is spelt out in detail in their advising memorandum on the subject. Nevertheless, the study found that the approach does not align with the principles and practices of Public Human Resource Management (PHRM). According to the findings, the NSNP lacks a defined recruitment policy that would govern its hiring practices. It was found that there are challenges in the recruitment process. Finally, this paper offered recommendations for improved recruitment practices for food handlers. Key Words: Food handlers, Recruitment, Human Resource Management (HRM), Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP)