The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry

What The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry does

The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry (BCCEI) is a statutory body established under South Africa's Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 and registered at the Department of Labour on 7 December 2012. It commenced operations in June 2013 under founding General Secretary Nick Faasen and is headquartered in Johannesburg, with regional offices in Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, East London, and Bloemfontein. BCCEI operates as an industry-based forum of organised business and labour, representing two employer organisations (SAFCEC and Consolidated Employers Organisation) and two trade unions (NUM and BCAWU). It collectively bargains on behalf of approximately 760 civil engineering companies and 68,000 employees (as of 2017), with mandatory registration applying to CIDB grade 4-9 contractors and any CIDB 1-3 firms that subcontract to larger companies.

BCCEI's core product set comprises six collective agreements (Wage and Task Grade, Conditions of Employment, CIRBF, Dispute Resolution, Registration and Administration, and Exemptions), a CCMA-accredited Dispute Resolution Centre operational since 2015, a Compliance Department staffed by designated agents, and a managed portfolio of industry benefit funds covering retirement (CIRBF), medical aid (BCIMA), and funeral cover. The technology stack is modest: an electronic registration and levy return portal (bccei-compliance.co.za) launched in 2016, supported by a website and member circulars. BCCEI holds CCMA accreditation (2015) and POPI Act compliance certification (2021).

The revenue model is funded through mandatory Administration and Dispute Resolution Levies paid equally by employers and employees, with the operating budget having grown from R3.2 million at inception to R46 million by 2017. Distribution is direct via the six regional offices, the compliance portal, designated field agents, and the Dispute Resolution Centre. As of 2025, Acting General Secretary Kevin Moodley announced a new three-year settlement covering wage and conditions agreements, signalling continuity of the multi-year bargaining cycle that has delivered nearly a decade of industrial relations stability without sectoral strikes.

Name

The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry

Legal name

The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry

Website

https://bccei.co.za

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

BCCEI is a South African statutory body established under the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 that collectively bargains, enforces compliance, and resolves disputes for the civil engineering industry, serving approximately 760 employers and 68,000 employees through six regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Administration and Dispute Resolution Levy: The BCCEI is funded through levies paid equally by employers and employees. This mandatory contribution supports the council's operations, dispute resolution services, compliance monitoring, and administrative functions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

No source-attributed description of the company's core offering was provided in the input.

Product overview

The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry (BCCEI) operates as a statutory body providing a suite of labor relations and compliance services to the civil engineering sector. Its core offerings include the Dispute Resolution Centre (accredited by CCMA), a Compliance Department with designated agents, and Industry Funds management covering retirement, medical aid, and funeral benefits. The BCCEI administers six collective agreements (Wage and Task Grade, Conditions of Employment, CIRBF, Dispute Resolution, Registration and Administration, and Exemptions) that set employment standards across the industry. Additionally, it provides an electronic compliance portal for member registrations and levy submissions, and maintains a network of regional offices across South Africa.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly a decade of industrial relations stability with no industry strikes
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SAFCEC (South African Forum of Civil Engineering Contractors)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmployer organisation and party member of BCCEI. SAFCEC represents civil engineering contractors in collective bargaining and sector governance.
• NUM (National Union of Mineworkers)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrade union and party member of BCCEI. NUM represents employees in collective bargaining negotiations.
• BCAWU (Building, Construction and Allied Workers Union)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrade union and party member of BCCEI. BCAWU represents construction and building workers in the sector.
• CEO (Consolidated Employers Organisation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmployer organisation and party member of BCCEI since October 2016. CEO focuses on representing businesses, particularly small to medium enterprises.
• Department of Employment and LabourcoreOthersGovernment department that oversees labour relations legislation and gazettes BCCEI collective agreements.
• CCMA (Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration)coreOthersCCMA provides accreditation for BCCEI's Dispute Resolution Centre to handle sector-specific disputes.
• CIRBF (Construction Industry Retirement Benefit Fund)coreOthersIndustry retirement fund managed for the benefit of civil engineering sector employees.
• BCIMA (Building and Construction Industry Medical Aid Fund)coreOthersIndustry medical aid fund for civil engineering sector employees.
• Momentum Industry Funeral PolicycoreOthersFuneral benefit policy for local development committee (LDC) employees in the civil engineering sector.
• International Labour Organisation (ILO)minorOthersILO provides training programmes for BCCEI negotiators to improve negotiation skills and build relationships.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• South African Local Government Bargaining Council (SALGBC): Statutory bargaining council for South African local government, operating with the same collective bargaining and dispute resolution architecture under the LRA. Comparable scale and mandate to BCCEI, but serving a different sector.
• Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC): Statutory bargaining council for the South African public service, operating under the same LRA framework as BCCEI with centralised collective bargaining and dispute resolution across government departments.
• Bargaining Council for the Building Industry: Statutory bargaining council covering the South African building industry, with parallel collective bargaining, dispute resolution and compliance functions to BCCEI but focused on building rather than civil engineering works.
• National Bargaining Council for the Road Freight and Logistics Industry (NBCRFLI): Statutory bargaining council for the road freight sector with parallel collective bargaining, dispute resolution and industry fund administration. Comparable in mandate and operating model to BCCEI, but serving transport rather than civil engineering.
• National Bargaining Council for the Chemical Industry: Statutory bargaining council for the South African chemical industry, employing the same LRA framework of collective bargaining, dispute resolution and levy funding as BCCEI, but for the chemicals sector.
• Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council (MEIBC): South African statutory bargaining council for the metal and engineering industries under the LRA. The closest direct analogue to BCCEI — same statutory structure, levy funding model and CCMA-accredited dispute resolution function, but covering metal/engineering rather than civil engineering.

Broad incumbents

• Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA): National statutory body that accredits BCCEI's Dispute Resolution Centre and oversees bargaining councils generally. Operates broadly across all sectors as the umbrella dispute resolution body rather than competing directly with BCCEI.

Others

• National Union of Mineworkers (NUM): Trade union that is a party member of BCCEI representing employees in the civil engineering sector. Engages with BCCEI as a collective bargaining counterparty rather than as a competitor.
• South African Forum of Civil Engineering Contractors (SAFCEC): Employer organisation that is a party member of BCCEI. Represents civil engineering contractors' commercial interests and works within the BCCEI collective bargaining framework rather than competing with it.
• Department of Employment and Labour (South Africa): Government department that registers and regulates bargaining councils such as BCCEI under the LRA. Functions as BCCEI's regulatory oversight authority rather than a competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/Coralynne_Assoc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bccei-bargaining-council-for-the-engineering-industry

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Bargaining Council for the Civil Engineering Industry