According to the Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) survey for the first quarter of 2024, released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), total employment in the formal non-agricultural sector decreased by 67,000 jobs, bringing the employment level to 10.7 million.
The survey indicated that 74,000 jobs were lost between March 2023 and March 2024.
Employment QES Q1 2024
The total number of employees declined by 67,000, or 0.6%, from 10,731,000 in December 2023 to 10,664,000 in March 2024.
The highest job losses were recorded in the trade and community services industries, with reductions of 57,000 and 18,000 jobs respectively.
The business services sector lost 4,000 jobs, while the mining industry saw a decrease of 3,000 jobs. The electricity sector reported no change during this period.
However, some industries experienced employment growth. The manufacturing sector added 12,000 jobs, followed by the transport industry with 2,000 jobs, and the construction industry with 1,000 jobs.
Full-time employment fell by 29,000 jobs, decreasing from 9,513,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023 to 9,484,000 in the first quarter of 2024.
Several industries saw declines in full-time employment:
Trade: -35,000 jobs
Community services: -13,000 jobs
Mining: -3,000 jobs
Conversely, the manufacturing industry reported an increase of 18,000 full-time jobs. The business services and construction industries also saw moderate increases, adding 3,000 and 1,000 jobs respectively.
Year-on-year, the number of full-time jobs declined by 16,000 from March 2023 to March 2024.
Part-time employment decreased by 38,000 jobs, from 1,218,000 in December 2023 to 1,180,000 in March 2024.
The trade industry was the main driver of this decline, losing 22,000 jobs. Other significant losses were recorded in business services (7,000 jobs), manufacturing (6,000 jobs), and community services (5,000 jobs). The transport industry, however, added 2,000 part-time jobs, while the electricity and construction sectors remained unchanged.
Year-on-year, part-time employment fell by 58,000 jobs compared to the first quarter of 2023.
Earnings Q1 2024
Total gross earnings paid to employees decreased by 3.5%, amounting to R957.9 billion in March 2024 compared to R993 billion in December 2023. This decline was driven by losses in the following sectors:
Trade: -R12.3 billion
Community services: -R10.3 billion
Manufacturing: -R10 billion
Construction: -R6.3 billion
Transport: -R3.4 billion
Electricity: -R1.1 billion
Mining: -R858 million
The business services industry was the only sector to report an increase in earnings, with a gain of R9.3 billion.
Basic salaries and wages decreased by 0.8% (R6.7 billion) in March 2024, totaling R848.9 billion. This reduction was primarily driven by losses in trade, manufacturing, construction, mining, and business services.
However, there were increases in the transport, electricity, and community services industries.
Year-on-year, basic salaries and wages paid to employees rose by 5%, or R40 billion, from March 2023 to March 2024.
Bonus payments decreased by R27.6 billion (-25.3%) to R81.4 billion, with losses reported across all industries except business services, which saw an increase of R9.9 billion.
Year-on-year, bonus payments rose by 0.5%, or R438 million, from March 2023 to March 2024.
Overtime payments decreased by 2.7%, or R779 million, totaling R27.6 billion in the first quarter of 2024.
Reductions in overtime payments were noted in the business services, manufacturing, construction, and transport industries, while increases were reported in the electricity, trade, and community services sectors.
Year-on-year, overtime payments increased by R3 billion, marking a 12% rise from March 2023 to March 2024.
The average monthly earnings (AME) paid to employees saw a slight decline of 0.1% quarter-on-quarter, falling from R26,822 in November 2023 to R26,791 in February 2024.
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