Political parties urge immediate action as unemployment hits 32.9% in South Africa

Political parties have stressed the need for urgent action, economic reform, and stronger leadership in response to South Africa’s deepening jobs crisis.

This comes after Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) on Tuesday reported that the official unemployment rate rose to 32.9% in the first quarter of 2025, up from 31.9% in Quarter 4 2024.

The expanded unemployment rate, which includes discouraged work seekers, also increased significantly to 43.1%, the highest level in nearly three years. According to StatsSA, 8.23 million South Africans are now jobless, while millions more remain outside the labour market entirely.

ActionSA Member of Parliament, Alan Beesley, criticised the Government of National Unity’s (GNU) response, saying:

“South Africa’s unemployment crisis is spiralling out of control, and the so-called Government of National Unity (GNU) remains missing in action. Behind every number is a young graduate sending out CVs with no response, a breadwinner sitting at home with no income, and families forced to choose between electricity and food.”

Beesley said that just last week, Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille revealed that her department now receives up to 10,000 applications for job openings, forcing them to rely on artificial intelligence to shortlist candidates.

''This is a stark sign of the desperation gripping South African households and the overwhelming pressure on even the most basic job opportunities.

“This worsening crisis is being fuelled by the GNU’s lack of urgency, policy indecision, and total absence of accountability. GDP growth remains stuck below 1%, interest payments now consume 22 cents of every Rand in tax revenue, and not a single GNU Minister has signed a performance agreement.”

ActionSA has called for urgent reforms in Budget 3.0, warning that: “Without bold action, this government will be remembered not for national unity, but for a national unemployment crisis.”

GOOD Party, secretary-general, Brett Herron, noted the seriousness of the crisis, saying:

“Unemployment is getting worse, not better. The official unemployment rate has climbed to a shocking 32.9%, nearly 25 million South Africans of working age have no income to support themselves or their families.”

Youth remain hardest hit, with 46.1% of those aged 15–34 unemployed, and 45.1% not in employment, education, or training (NEET).

South Africa’s stagnant economic growth has fuelled almost two decades of rising unemployment, he said

“South Africa is not just facing an unemployment crisis, it's facing a crisis of dignity. Every lost job means another family pushed into poverty. Every discouraged worker is a symbol of a broken economic system.”

He criticised the GNU’s failure to act decisively, despite President Ramaphosa's commitment in the State of the Nation Address to build on the Social Relief of Distress grant as a foundation for “a sustainable form of income support.” The ongoing budget impasse, he said, has stalled progress.

 Moreover, GOOD renewed its call for a basic income grant of R1,000 per month, saying:

“This isn’t charity, it’s economic justice and moral obligation. Supporting people means supporting recovery.”

“All ten parties in the GNU agreed to create a fairer, more just society. The time for action is now.”

Democratic Alliance (DA) Employment and Labour spokesperson Michael Bagraim highlighted that approximately 300,000 jobs were shed in Quarter 1 2025. 

“The DA’s fight for growth and jobs within the GNU is exactly what needs to be accelerated in the current economic environment.”

Calling for urgent reform, Bagraim stressed that: “A job is more than income, it is hope for the future, security and dignity.

''Our country needs a growth agenda that unlocks barriers to investment, such as eliminating job quotas and economic and labour regulations that protect narrow interests and not all South Africans,'' he said. 

“Time has long run out for discussion on jobs and growth. South Africa must now act, if we are to turn this around.”

hope.ntanzi@iol.co.za 

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