This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.BL Premium reports that Capitec CEO Gerrie Fourie has called on SA to rethink its unemployment metric and contends that when the vast informal sector is taken into account, the headline figure of 32.9% could be closer to 10%.
“What is interesting is when you look at the unemployment rate, we talk about 32%. But Stats SA doesn’t count self-employed people. I really think that is an area we must correct. The unemployment rate is probably actually 10%. Just go look at the number of people in the township informal market, who are selling all sorts of stuff, who have a turnover of R1,000 a day,” Fourie said. He went on to explain Stats SA ignored the country’s large “emerging market”, describing entrepreneurs in this space as “discouraged” job seekers. Fourie’s comments tap into the national conversation about the role of the informal economy, potentially reframing discussions around economic policy. They also invite scepticism that such redefinition risks glossing over deep structural issues that should serve as a catalyst for meaningful policy reform. Fourie’s comments are likely to face pushback, with SA regarded as one of the most unequal societies in the world. SA is regarded as the most unequal society in the world, with unemployment, particularly among the youth, at astonishing levels.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Kabelo Khumalo at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
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