13 May 2025
The Federation of Unions of South Africa (FEDUSA) is gravely concerned by the deteriorating state of the country’s labour market, as confirmed by the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for the first quarter of 2025. The latest publication paints a sobering picture of deepening joblessness and persistent labour market exclusion, particularly among young people, which demonstrates the need for a national and coordinated employment recovery strategy anchored in inclusive economic reform.
According to Statistics South Africa, the number of employed persons declined by 291 000 to 16.8 million, down from 17.1 million in the previous quarter. Simultaneously, the number of unemployed persons rose by 237 000, reaching 8.2 million. The labour force shrank by 54 000 people – a reflection of growing disillusionment and the economy’s inability to generate jobs at the scale and quality required. The official unemployment rate increased by a full percentage point to 32.9%, while the expanded unemployment rate rose to 43.1%, a 1.2 percentage point increase from the previous quarter.
These figures confirm what FEDUSA and other progressive formations have long warned: South Africa is in the grip of a jobs crisis and a systemic erosion of hope and human capital. The increase in discouraged work-seekers by 7 000 and the rise in economically inactive individuals for reasons other than discouragement by 177 000, bringing the total not economically active population to 16.7 million, reflect widespread disengagement from the world of work.
What is particularly alarming is that the decline in employment is concentrated in the formal sector, which shed 245 000 jobs, signalling a contraction in stable, quality employment opportunities. The marginal growth of 17 000 in the informal sector reveals the increasing precariousness of economic activity.
This worsening scenario is the cumulative outcome of years of ineffective policies, uneven structural reforms, poor implementation, and insufficient coordination among government departments. While social partners, especially labour, have advanced proposals to stimulate employment, there has been limited political will to drive bold, labour-absorbing interventions with the urgency required.
Youth Unemployment: A Decade in Review
FEDUSA is particularly concerned by persistently high levels of youth unemployment. The decade in review by Stats SA shows that many young people are graduating into adulthood, never having been employed. There were 4.8 million unemployed young people in Q1:2025, nearly 59% of them with no previous work experience.
Over the past ten years, youth unemployment has rarely dropped below 40%. This reflects deep-seated labour market barriers, including a structural mismatch between education and economic needs, and insufficient job creation. An estimated 3.7 million young people aged 15–34 are not in employment, education, or training (NEET), representing a significant segment at risk of permanent marginalisation.
The youth employment crisis cannot be addressed through fragmented programmes or public relations exercises. FEDUSA calls for a nationally coordinated, adequately funded and binding youth employment framework that combines demand-led skills development with real work opportunities in both public and private sectors, supported by policies that reduce entry barriers.
FEDUSA’s Position
From FEDUSA’s standpoint, the solution lies in an integrated strategy rooted in inclusive industrial policy, active labour market interventions, and strong institutional coordination. Labour-absorbing sectors such as manufacturing, agro-processing, green energy, and the care economy must be prioritised. Public
investment, value-chain localisation and a procurement system that supports South African goods and services are essential.
Public employment must be scaled up to provide not only short-term relief but long-term pathways into decent work, especially in underserved communities. Training and education must align with sectoral demand, co-designed by labour, business and government. FEDUSA supports tripartite sectoral compacts with employment and training targets, supported by real-time data and incentive systems.
For those who have dropped out of the labour market, FEDUSA advocates targeted reactivation programmes, including job-search support, psychosocial services, and transport subsidies. Labour centres must be digitised, localised and staffed to provide relevant employment support.
Given the severity of the crisis, FEDUSA calls on the Presidency to convene a National Labour Market Indaba with urgency. This gathering must set out an employment compact with time-bound commitments, transparent monitoring systems, and the political will to implement agreed actions. It cannot and should not be just another jobs summit where grand announcements are made without budgets and comprehensive plans backed by scientific evidence.
The QLFS results for Q1:2025 confirm that South Africa cannot continue on its current path. The deepening unemployment crisis is a threat not only to economic stability but to the country’s social fabric and democratic project. FEDUSA will continue to champion policies that place workers, their families and their communities at the centre of the economic recovery. Our resolve remains firm: there can be no inclusive growth without employment justice, no social peace without economic dignity.
END.