South Africa’s formal non-agricultural sector saw a modest recovery in the fourth quarter of 2024, with employment rising by 12,000 jobs.

However, a closer look at earnings data reveals mixed trends in the country’s job market.

According to the latest Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES, Q4:2024) from Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), average monthly earnings (AME) declined slightly by 0.2% on a quarterly basis, dropping from R28,274 in August 2024 to R28,231 in November 2024.

However, when compared to the same period last year, earnings grew by a healthy 5.3%, highlighting the resilience of the labour market in the face of broader economic challenges.

The average salary increase for South African employees in 2025 is expected to range between 5.5% and 5.7%. However, experts caution that this boost will likely fall short of offsetting inflation and the effects of tax bracket creep.

The electricity sector reported the highest average monthly earnings, significantly surpassing the overall average. The mining and community services industries also showed competitive salaries, followed by strong wage levels in transport and business services.

On the other hand, manufacturing, construction, and trade sectors recorded wages below the overall average, reflecting the varied economic conditions and challenges faced by each industry.

The modest increase in average monthly earnings coincided with a slight overall rise in employment. In the final quarter of 2024, South Africa’s formal non-agricultural sector added 12,000 jobs, bringing the total number of employed individuals to 10.64 million by December 2024.

This represents a 0.1% increase compared to the previous quarter, despite a year-on-year decline of 91,000 jobs since December 2023.

The trade industry was the biggest contributor to this growth, adding 42,000 jobs in the final quarter of the year. Business services also played a significant role, contributing 22,000 new jobs.

However, the community services sector saw the largest loss, shedding 26,000 positions, while both the construction and manufacturing industries lost 13,000 jobs each.

Full-time employment saw a modest increase of 10,000 jobs in Q4, growing from 9.477 million to 9.487 million. The trade sector was again the main contributor, adding 24,000 full-time positions, with business services following closely behind with an increase of 21,000 jobs.

Other sectors, such as transport and electricity, also saw small gains. However, full-time employment remains lower than it was a year ago, with a decline of 26,000 full-time positions between December 2023 and December 2024.

Part-time employment also showed a slight uptick, increasing by 2,000 jobs from 1.151 million in September 2024 to 1.153 million in December. The trade sector was the main driver of this growth, adding 18,000 part-time positions, while business services and construction sectors each contributed an additional 1,000 jobs.

On a year-on-year basis, part-time employment dropped significantly, with 65,000 fewer part-time jobs compared to December 2023.

Total gross earnings in the formal sector saw a substantial increase of 6.1%, reaching R1.03 trillion in December 2024, up from R969.4 billion in September.

This growth was driven by gains in the trade sector, which contributed an additional R13.6 billion in earnings, as well as increases in manufacturing and community services earnings, which rose by R13 billion and R12.4 billion, respectively.

The mining industry was the only sector to report a decline in earnings, with a decrease of R910 million.

Salaries, Wages, and Bonuses

Basic salaries and wages increased by 0.8% (R9.5 billion), reaching R889.7 billion by December 2024. The community services, trade, manufacturing, business services, transport, construction, and electricity industries were the key drivers behind this growth.

However, the mining sector again reported a decline in salaries and wages.

Bonus payments surged by 85.4% (R51.8 billion) in Q4 2024, climbing from R60.7 billion in September to R112.5 billion in December.

This sharp increase was primarily due to higher bonus payouts across various industries, including manufacturing, trade, community services, and business services.

Year-on-year, bonus payments grew by 3.2%, adding R3.4 billion compared to December 2023.

Meanwhile, overtime payments saw a decline of 7.7% (R2.2 billion), dropping to R26.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024. Despite the overall drop, certain industries, such as manufacturing, trade, and construction, reported increases in overtime payments.

On a year-on-year basis, overtime payments decreased by R2 billion, marking a 7.1% decline from the previous year.