The results show that 48 per cent of the respondents who earn less than R100 000 per annum thought it was difficult to navigate daily life without paying bribe while only 27 per cent of the higher income group (R500 000 and more per annum) believe the same.
Professor Deon Rossouw, CEO of The Ethics Institute, said: “Our survey respondents are typically from a wide socio-economic range so this year we decided to focus specifically on the difference between the experience of bribery of South Africans in higher versus lower income groups.
“We found that South Africans with lower income find it significantly more difficult to get through everyday life without paying a bribe, particularly with respect to bribes to secure jobs.
“There is a certain injustice in the fact that those who have the least resources are most vulnerable to being targeted. It is a reflection of the desperation of many in our society and an uncomfortable reminder that the adage ‘bread first, morals later’ might hold true.”
According to survey respondents the top five reasons for resorting to bribery are to avoid traffic offences (36 per cent); to secure a job (18 per cent); to obtain a driver’s licence (15 per cent); to get a tender (7 per cent); and to receive unauthorised discounts from business (4 per cent).
The survey results also show that lower income groups are 17 per cent more vulnerable to paying bribes for jobs, while those with an income of more than R500 000 in turn experience 16 per cent more tender bribery than the low income group.
Bribery for driver’s licences was also eight per cent higher for the lower income respondents, which according to Rossouw, could reflect the value that a driver’s licence has in relation to securing a job at this income level.
Rossouw says it is interesting to note that bribes for discounts/free goods were more prominent with the lower income respondents and completely absent from the higher income respondents.
The survey findings were based on interviews with more than 4553 South Africans from urban centres in Gauteng, Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and Western Cape.
The objective of the survey is to gain insight into the everyday experience of South Africans in relation to their perceptions of bribery, the extent of bribery in the country as well as the socio-economic factors that influence it.
Key findings include:
- 33 per cent of respondents know someone who was asked for a bribe in the past year;
- The average bribe amount is R2200, up by R195 from last year;
- 18 per cent of bribes are to secure employment;
- 51 per cent of the bribes were for traffic related offences
