The most recent Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) findings, which indicate a marginal but substantial decline in the nation’s unemployment rate, have been warmly received by the government.
According to Phumla Williams, director general of the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), “the 648 000 jobs that were added between the first quarter of 2022 and the second quarter of 2022 point to a resilient economy showing signs of recovery in the labour market post-COVID-19 pandemic.”
The official unemployment rate declined by 0.6% from 34.5% in the first quarter of 2022 to 33.9% in the second quarter, according to Statistics South Africa (Stats SA).
The findings of the QLFS for the second quarter of 2022 were released by Stats SA on Tuesday. They revealed that Community and Social Services (which added 276 000 jobs), Trade (169 000), Finance (118,000), and Construction (104 000) had the largest employment growth.
However, manufacturing (73 000) and transportation had major employment losses (54 000). In the second quarter of 2022, there were 15.6 million people who were employed overall.
Williams said that although the current data is positive, the problem of unemployment, particularly among the young and women, continues to be a serious worry.
Williams remarked, “We cannot be ignorant to the reality that more has to be done in order to further improve the situation.
Through the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, the government will continue to step up its employment measures and support the ongoing economic recovery.
The quarterly labour force survey found that over half of South African women were not employed, which is cause for worry.
Nearly half of South African women of working age are not in the labour force as of 2022, compared to 35.6% of their male counterparts. 47% of South African women were identified as economically inactive.
Most women were also thought to be in precarious occupations with poor pay and low output; males were taken on at a higher rate than women.
According to GCIS, the unemployment rate for women is now 35.5%, compared to 32.6% for males.
Williams emphasised that although the disparity in unemployment between men and women cannot be disregarded, it has narrowed over the previous ten years, now standing at 2.9% compared to 2012, when it was 3.7%.
In Quarter 2:2022, the professions with the highest proportion of female employees were Elementary (22.3%), Sales and services (18.5%), Clerk (16.4%), Domestic workers (11.9%), and Technician (11.2%).
Men held the majority of positions in Elementary (24.4%), Craft and related trade (17.2%), Sales and Services (15.0%), and Plant and Machine Operator (13.4%) over the same time period.
To promote employment and generate jobs, the government has put in place a number of initiatives. Over the previous two years, the Presidential Employment Stimulus has supported 872 930 employment and livelihoods, and it will shortly reach 1 million individuals directly via a variety of programmes.
Additionally, the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention has assisted young people looking for employment in finding employment prospects. Important achievements in the intervention’s execution to date include:
Through SAYouth.mobi, more than 2.9 million young people are now enrolled on the National Pathway Management Network.
358 738 young individuals in total, 69% of whom were young women, have found employment via SA Youth.
The NYDA and Department of Small Business Development provided non-financial help to a total of 30 735 young people and financial enterprise support to 7 530 young people.
The National Pathway Management Network helped put 36 440 young people in the formal and informal economies as well as in public jobs during the first quarter of 2022–2023 alone.
Along with these employment initiatives, Operation Vulindlela’s structural changes will help to release investment and promote job growth as the economy recovers.
The President Ramaphosa-announced expedited energy sector reform is anticipated to significantly stimulate economic development and job creation.
“While improvements have been achieved recently, according to Stats SA, job creation and economic recovery continue to be the government’s key goals.
What we have accomplished demonstrates that nothing is insurmountable if we all put our hands to the wheel and cooperate to achieve the shared objective of producing a large number of employment for our people, Williams added.