Latest jobs report brings some good news, but unemployment still sky high

The latest jobs report brings some good news, but unemployment is still sky high, remaining consistently above 20% for more than two decades. The unemployment rate dropped unexpectedly to 33.9% in the second quarter of 2022, despite the devastating floods in Durban – a key economic hub – and more intense load shedding.

According to the results of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for the second quarter that Statistics South Africa released today, the country gained 648,000 jobs between the first and second quarter. The official unemployment rate was 33.9%, a 0.6 ppt decline and the total number of people employed was 15.6 million, while the number of unemployed deceased by 132,000 to 8 million compared to the previous quarter.

Economic research group, Oxford Economics Africa, says the latest jobless numbers in the jobs report came in better than its expectations, as well as the median forecast of 35%, but the official unemployment rate remains above pre-pandemic levels and unsustainably high.

“An inflated civil service with handsome remuneration growth has necessitated the diversion of resources away from infrastructure investment and maintenance in recent years. South Africa’s economy is producing jobless growth and given our economic projections, we expect the unemployment rate to remain stuck around 32% over the medium term.”

ALSO READ: SA has worst unemployment rate among world’s economic data-tracking countries

Jobs shedding in manufacturing and transport

Manufacturing shed 73,000 and transport 54,000 jobs, according to the jobs report, which Oxford Economics says was to be expected after the heavy flooding in KwaZulu-Natal impacted negatively on manufacturing at the start of the second quarter.

The unemployment rate according to the expanded definition (the ‘broad’ unemployment rate) decreased by 1.4 ppts to 44.1% most recently, compared to 44.4% during the same quarter last year. The labour force participation rate also increased from 56.9% in the first quarter to 58.6%, moving closer to pre-pandemic levels of about 60%.

Oxford Economics Africa notes that it is concerning though that young people between the ages of 15 and 24 (61.4%) and between 25 and 34 (41.2%) recorded the highest unemployment rates of the second quarter, which it says is highlighting the gravity of South Africa’s unemployment crisis.

ALSO READ: Youth unemployment programme changing lives – Ramaphosa

Women still finding it tougher to find employment

Statistics SA also noted that the phenomenon of women finding it tougher than men to find work is more pronounced in South Africa, with its higher unemployment rates compared to the rest of the world.

“In 2022, 47.0% of South African women were recorded as economically inactive, which means that almost half of the working age women in South Africa are out of the labour force, compared to 35.6% of their male counterparts, while the latest global labour force participation rate for women is about 47% compared to 72% for men.”

The productive potential of South Africa women in the labour market remains unused and the proportion of women out of the labour force still remains high.

Statistics SA says the labour market continues to favour men and shows no signs of making real progress towards improving prospects for women. From 2012 to 2022, the unemployment rate for women remained above the national average.

“In 2012, the unemployment rate for women was 3.7 percentage points higher than the rate for men, while in 2022 a gap of 2.9 percentage points was observed. The current unemployment rate for women is 35.5% compared to 32.6% for men.”

In South Africa, the labour force participation rate for women in the second quarter was 53.0% compared to 64.4% for men, a gap of 11.4 percentage points. Women also have the lowest absorption rate at 34.2% in the second quarter, lower than their male counterparts at 43.4%.

The absorption rate represents the share of the working age population that is actually used by the economy.

ALSO READ: Stop trying to fix SA’s permanent unemployment problems with temporary solutions

Women stuck in vulnerable employment in menial jobs

In addition, Statistics SA says women who do find work are usually employed in vulnerable employment, often characterised by inadequate earnings, low productivity and difficult work conditions.

Only 5.8% of employed women occupy management positions, compared to 9.8% of employed men. The occupations that contributed the largest share of employment among women include elementary (22.3%), sales and services (18.5%), clerk (16.4%), domestic workers (11.9%) and technician (11.2%).

Men, on the other hand, recorded the largest share in elementary (24.4%), craft and related trade (17.2%), sales and services (15.0%) and plant and machine operator (13.4%).

According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2022, gender parity is not getting better. With the rising global crises, it is women who suffer the most, worsening the existing negative labour market outcomes for women.