South Africa’s unemployment rate dropped slightly to 21,9% in the quarter ended December 2008 from 23,2% in the third quarter, Statistics South Africa data showed on Monday.
Jobs growth reached 1,4% quarter-on-quarter (q/q) from the -0,5% q/q seen in the third quarter.
The total number of employed people was reported to have lifted by 189 000 to 13,844-million, but the total labour force was down by 59 000 to 17,718-million.
Notably, discouraged work-seekers were reported to be up a telling 9,1% q/q, or 97 000, to 1,168-million.
The number of unemployed fell 249 000 to 3,873-million, a -6% q/q drop.
However, the sector of the population that is not economically active was 152 000 higher at 13,176-million.
Formal, non-agricultural employment lifted 98 000 to 9,537-million on the quarter, while the informal, non-agricultural sector gained 71 000 jobs to 2,246-million.
Agricultural sector jobs showed a loss of 3 000 to 764 000.
Those employed in private households gained 24 000 to 1,298-million.
Labour absorption (the number of employed in the 15 to 64 population of 30,894-million) was reported to be up 0,5% to 44,8%, but the labour force participation rate was down 0,4% to 57,3%.
“Since the increase in employment [189 000] was less than the decline in unemployment [249 000], the economically active portion of the working-age population [the labour force] declined [59 000] resulting in a lower labour force participation rate [0,3 percentage points]. [This was aided by the 0,3% increase in the working-age population],” said Stats SA.
“More than half of the new jobs that were created were in the formal sector, excluding agriculture [98 000], however the number of jobs created in the formal sector is not statistically significant,” added the statisticians.
“While unemployment declined by 249 000 [6%], there was a 97 000 increase in the number of discouraged work-seekers representing a growth rate of 9,1%,” concluded Stats SA.
There has been an increase in employment for both sexes; however the rate of growth was higher for men compared to women (1,6% and 1,1% respectively). At the same time the decrease in the number of unemployed males was higher compared to females (8,5% and 3,7% respectively).
Among the economically inactive population, there was an increase in the number of discouraged work-seekers for both men and women, but the percentage change was higher among men (16%) compared to women (4,4%).
An increase in employment was reported in all provinces except Free State and Limpopo. The highest increase was observed in the Western Cape (66 000), followed by KwaZulu-Natal (48 000) and Eastern Cape (43 000).
The construction sector had the only statistically significant increase of 8,6% q/q, or 89 000 people, to 1,191-million. This is significant as the increase was not off a low base — an increase of 8,1% had been reported in the third quarter. — I-Net Bridge