Ian Clayton
South Africa’s poorest provinces have the most civil servants, it was revealed in Parliament this week.
There are more civil servants in the Northern Province – 119 465 – than there are in Gauteng – 112 851 – although Gauteng has 2,4-million more residents.
The Northern Province has 25 civil servants for every 100 people, the Free State 23 and the Eastern Cape 22, but Gauteng has 15 and the Western Cape 17. Mpumalanga, KwaZulu- Natal and the Northern Cape each have 18 civil servants for every 100 people.
By the end of last year, 1 100 784 people were employed in the public sector – an overall decline of 3,32%.
Figures contained in the Department of Public Service and Administration’s Exchequer Report, which was tabled in Parliament, show public-service employment has declined from a peak in 1995 of 1 270 112, by 170 348.
Most of this shrinkage has taken place in national departments. Last year, for instance, the number of people employed in national departments dropped by 15,3%, from 83 661 to 70 588. Public employment in the provinces only declined by 2,05%, a decrease of 16 409 to 758 277.
On December 31 last year, 70,21% of civil servants were black, 3,54% Asian, 8,54% coloured and 17,71% white. More than half – 50,28% – were female.
But 37,48% of the male employees were blacks in lower-skilled (under R27 443 a year) or skilled positions (R27 444 to R47 612 a year), as were 30,37% of the women.
Last year, civil servants earned a total of R54 638 120 407 – an average increase of 5,54% – but the average salary rose by 9,26%, to R49 635,64 a year.
With an economically active population of 13 785 493, and 1 564 193 in the total government sector, one out of every 8,8 economically active South Africans works for the government – 11,3% of the economically active population.
Clearly, the government’s determination to reduce the size of the civil service still has a way to go.