NEWS: Manufacturing, Construction recorded largest decrease in unemployment

In the fourth quarter of last year, the country's unemployment rate surged from 34.9% to 35.3%.

As South Africa breaches the 35% barrier in unemployment, the country also seems to be shedding jobs in key industries.

In the fourth quarter of last year, the country's unemployment rate surged from 34.9% to 35.3%.

This is the highest it's been since the 2008 global financial crisis.

The largest decreases in employment were recorded in manufacturing and construction, which lost 85,000 and 25,000 jobs respectively.

Statistician General Risenga Maluleke said they had identified a trend over the years: “Manufacturing does fluctuate quarter on quarter. The one that has been depressed over sometime is the area of construction as the industry has been consistently losing jobs.”

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He said 143,000 more people were employed in the formal sector: “The formal sector has always been showing a bit of recovery.”

'DEMOTIVATED WORKSEEKERS'

Almost four million South Africans have been classified as discouraged job seekers bringing unemployment according to the expanded definition to 46.2%.

The labour force report states four in every 10 young people between the ages of 15 and 34 were not employed, in education or training in the final quarter of last year.

Despite a more relaxed form of lockdown and more industries being open, the number of unemployed youth who were not in school increased by 2.9% compared to 2020 in the same period.

CEO of the Youth Employment Service Ravi Naidoo said this was because workers were discouraged.

“A lot of people have dropped out of the system and education institutions because they were feeling demotivated.”

Naidoo said without radical changes to the economy, this picture was likely to remain grim.

Source: EWN