JOHANNESBURG - A total of 8,1 million people are now unemployed in South Africa.
This is according to the latest tally by Statistics South Africa, which says there was a decrease of 345 000 in the number of employed persons.
Unemployment increased to 32,7 in the first quarter of 2026 from 31,4 in the fourth quarter of 2025.
“This result is a decrease of 44 000 in the labour force during the same period,” Stats SA said in a statement.
It said in the same period, discouraged job seekers increased by 178 000 to 3,9 million, other available job-seekers increased by 55 000 to 910 000, and unavailable job-seekers increased by 6 000 to 49 000, resulting in a total net increase of 240 000 to 4,9 million in the potential labour force population.