The Eastern Cape lost 30000 jobs in the last three months of last year. However, the jobs landscape in BCM showed an improvement.
This is according to the latest quarterly labour force survey statistics released in Pretoria yesterday by the new Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke. His statistics flagged the province as one of the five worst job-shedders in South Africa.
The province’s unemployment rate rose to 35.1% in the fourth quarter of last year, an increase of 6.7 percentage points from the same period in 2016, when unemployment was at 28.4%.
This is the largest increase in the official unemployment rate compared to other provinces.
According to Maluleke, the province’s expanded unemployment rate stood at 44.8% by the end of the 2017 fourth quarter, an increase of 3.5 percentage points from the same period in 2016 when the rate stood at 41.3%. Expanded unemployment includes people who have given up looking for work. Between the fourth quarter of 2016 and Q4 of last year, the province lost 57000 jobs.
By the end of December 2016, 1.44 million Eastern Cape people were employed, a figure which declined to 1.39-million by December last year.
By December last year, there were 754000 unemployed people in the province, compared to 574000 in 2016 – an increase of 180000.
Manufacturing jobs fell from 142000 to 115000, construction jobs from 185000 to 146000, and in the transport sector from 80000 to 64000.
On the bright side, the number of employed in the agriculture sector in the province increased from 88000 to 94000, in the finance sector from 149000 to 152000, and those employed by private households increased from 107000 to 120000.
In the fourth quarter of last year, the Eastern Cape’s job losses were the third worst out of all provinces. The worst was Gauteng, where 77000 jobs were lost and Limpopo, which lost more than 35000.
Nationally, at the end of last year’s fourth quarter, the unemployment rate stood at 26.7%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from 26.5% in the last quarter of 2016.
According to Maluleke’s report, South Africa’s expanded unemployment rate by end of December 2017 stood at 36.3%, a slight increase from the 35.6% achieved during the same period in 2016.
The quarterly labour force survey is a household-based Stats SA sample survey which collects data on the labour market activities of persons aged 15 to 64.
In the province’s two metropolitan municipalities, Buffalo City Metro (BCM) and the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro (NMBM), Maluleke revealed that labour suffered mixed fortunes over the past year.
In BCM, the unemployment rate decreased by 4.4 percentage points, from 33.4% at the end of December 2016, to 29.0% by the end of December 2017.
The expanded unemployment rate decreased from 36.1% to 33.7% in the same period.
During the same period the number of unemployed people decreased from 119 000 to 101000.
In NMB, the unemployment rate increased from 29.6% in 2016, to 36.5% by December last year.
Its expanded unemployment rate increased from 30.2% to 37.0% in the same period.
The number of those unemployed in the Bay increased from 154000 to 193000 between December 2016 and December last year.
The report showed that more than two million people between the ages of 15 and 64 were not economically active in the province by the end of December last year, while more than 326000 are described as “discouraged work-seekers”.
— asandan@dispatch.co.za
E Cape suffers largest unemployment hike
This is according to the latest quarterly labour force survey statistics released in Pretoria yesterday by the new Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke. His statistics flagged the province as one of the five worst job-shedders in South Africa.
The province’s unemployment rate rose to 35.1% in the fourth quarter of last year, an increase of 6.7 percentage points from the same period in 2016, when unemployment was at 28.4%.
This is the largest increase in the official unemployment rate compared to other provinces.
According to Maluleke, the province’s expanded unemployment rate stood at 44.8% by the end of the 2017 fourth quarter, an increase of 3.5 percentage points from the same period in 2016 when the rate stood at 41.3%. Expanded unemployment includes people who have given up looking for work. Between the fourth quarter of 2016 and Q4 of last year, the province lost 57000 jobs.
By the end of December 2016, 1.44 million Eastern Cape people were employed, a figure which declined to 1.39-million by December last year.
By December last year, there were 754000 unemployed people in the province, compared to 574000 in 2016 – an increase of 180000.
Manufacturing jobs fell from 142000 to 115000, construction jobs from 185000 to 146000, and in the transport sector from 80000 to 64000.
On the bright side, the number of employed in the agriculture sector in the province increased from 88000 to 94000, in the finance sector from 149000 to 152000, and those employed by private households increased from 107000 to 120000.
In the fourth quarter of last year, the Eastern Cape’s job losses were the third worst out of all provinces. The worst was Gauteng, where 77000 jobs were lost and Limpopo, which lost more than 35000.
Nationally, at the end of last year’s fourth quarter, the unemployment rate stood at 26.7%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from 26.5% in the last quarter of 2016.
According to Maluleke’s report, South Africa’s expanded unemployment rate by end of December 2017 stood at 36.3%, a slight increase from the 35.6% achieved during the same period in 2016.
The quarterly labour force survey is a household-based Stats SA sample survey which collects data on the labour market activities of persons aged 15 to 64.
In the province’s two metropolitan municipalities, Buffalo City Metro (BCM) and the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro (NMBM), Maluleke revealed that labour suffered mixed fortunes over the past year.
In BCM, the unemployment rate decreased by 4.4 percentage points, from 33.4% at the end of December 2016, to 29.0% by the end of December 2017.
The expanded unemployment rate decreased from 36.1% to 33.7% in the same period.
During the same period the number of unemployed people decreased from 119 000 to 101000.
In NMB, the unemployment rate increased from 29.6% in 2016, to 36.5% by December last year.
Its expanded unemployment rate increased from 30.2% to 37.0% in the same period.
The number of those unemployed in the Bay increased from 154000 to 193000 between December 2016 and December last year.
The report showed that more than two million people between the ages of 15 and 64 were not economically active in the province by the end of December last year, while more than 326000 are described as “discouraged work-seekers”.
— asandan@dispatch.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos