COSATU statement on the second quarter unemployment statistics
31 July 2018
The Congress of South African Trade Unions has noted with deep distress the reports showing that the official unemployment rate increased by half a percentage point to 27.2% from 26.7% in the first quarter. The Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) figures for the second quarter of 2018 released by Statistics South Africa today are depressing to say the least. The figures show that about 90 000 people lost their jobs in the second quarter of this year. This leaves the expanded unemployment rate at 37.2% according to Stats SA.
Both the formal sector and the informal sector recorded employment losses between first and second quarters of 2018 and the industry that recorded the most job losses was manufacturing which accounted for 105,000 jobs. It is alarming to see both the primary sector like mainly agriculture and the all important productive – manufacturing industries that make up the secondary sector all haemorrhaging jobs at such an alarming rate.
This is troubling because in his State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa promised to embark on several measures to address the unemployment challenge.
The policy incoherence, lack of decisive leadership and imagination are the real source of this depressing state of affairs. The fact that no one at the National Treasury still talks about the implementation of most of the “structural reforms” outlined by former Minister Malusi Gigaba in his nine point plan means that government is all over the place. In fact, given the continuing wavering in government and policy confusion, the situation is likely to get worse.