Analysis
The most striking characteristic of the South Africa workforce over the past decade is its increasing temporary nature. Since 2000, permanent employment has fallen from 11.0 million to 9.1 million workers, a decline of 1.9 million workers or 18.7% of the workforce. As indicated in the figure, permanent employment has barely recovered from the global financial crisis. For example, since the 2009 recession, permanent employment has increased by just 2%, whereas over the same period total employment - comprising permanent and temporary workers - has increased by 12.2%.
Permanent Employment in South Africa, 2000-2012
Source: Adcorp Analytics (2012)
Many companies face variable and unpredictable sales volumes, faced with which In marked contrast, there are now 3.9 million temporary workers in South Africa accounting for 30.2% of total employment. As indicated in the figure, since 2000, the number of temporary workers has increased by 2.6 million workers or 187.5%.