SA unemployment rate falls slightly to 31.9% in fourth quarter
Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke said that employment increased in all sectors except agriculture.
FILE: Job seekers wait on the side of a road holding placards showing their specialisation in Johannesburg, South Africa. Picture: MUJAHID SAFODIEN /AFP
JOHANNESBURG - The country’s unemployment rate has dropped by a marginal 0.2 of a percentage in the fourth and final quarter of last year.
This means the official unemployment rate now stands at 31.9%.
Stats SA released the Quarterly Labour Force Survey in Pretoria on Tuesday.
Despite the slight reprieve in joblessness, at least 8 million South Africans remain outside of the job market.
Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke said that employment increased in all sectors except agriculture.
"We can see, in terms of gains in employment where we are saying of the third quarter we have gained 132,000 jobs."
JUST IN: The country's official unemployment rate has dropped by a marginal 0,2 of a percent - coming down to 31,9% in the 4th quarter (2024). Despite this drop - 8 million eligible people are still jobless. Youth and black women remain among the hardest hit. @khanya_mntambo pic.twitter.com/okTWTDg5h6
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) February 18, 2025