291,000 jobs lost: South Africa's jobs bloodbath deepens as major companies exit and retrench

04 September 2025 | Economic factors

By: Hope Ntanzi - IOL

South Africa's job blood bath continues unabated. New data, released by Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey, reveals a staggering loss of 291,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2025.

The formal sector was hit hardest: trade shed 194,000 jobs, construction lost 119,000, mining declined by 35,000, private households cut 68,000 positions, and community and social services fell by 45,000.

Some sectors defied the trend, with the informal sector adding 17,000 jobs and agriculture growing by 6,000.

As a result, the official unemployment rate jumped one percentage point to 32.9%, leaving 8.2 million South Africans without work.

The expanded unemployment rate, which includes discouraged job seekers, climbed to 42.9%, leaving more than 8.3 million people officially unemployed and a staggering 25 million working-age South Africans currently not in any form of employment.

Youth unemployment remains particularly alarming, reaching 46.1% in 2025, with around 4.8 million young South Africans aged 15–34 out of work.

When including discouraged work-seekers, the expanded unemployment rate has climbed to 43.1%, indicating that nearly half of the working-age population is either unemployed or not actively seeking employment.

Economist Azar Jammine attributes the surge in unemployment to years of stagnant growth and persistent structural issues.

“They don’t just leave after a bad year or two,” he said, referring to the increasing exit of multinational companies. “But when there’s no light at the end of the tunnel, companies eventually decide it’s time to go.”

Jammine cited long-standing issues like government interference, excessive regulation, crime, failing municipalities, and low productivity as key barriers to business growth. He warned that mass retrenchments reduce consumer spending and shrink the tax base, placing more pressure on government finances.

“It becomes a vicious circle, a downward spiral,” he said.

The scale of job losses has been significant. Formal non-agricultural employment fell by 74,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2025, dropping from 10.65 million in December 2024 to 10.58 million in March 2025.