South Africa's Unemployment Rate Climbs to 33.6% in Q2 2026, Youth Hit Hardest

• Statistics South Africa's latest QES report revealed that the unemployment rate rose from 32.7% in Q1 to 33.6% in Q2
• Youth unemployment reached 47.4% as the number of jobless people aged 15 to 34 climbed to 5 million
• Formal sector employment shed 14,000 jobs quarter-on-quarter, coinciding with a GDP contraction of 0.2%

SOUTH AFRICA — South Africa's unemployment rate climbed to 33.6% in 2026's second quarter of 2026, up from 32.7% in the first quarter, according to the latest Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) report published by Statistics South Africa on 29 September 2026. The Survey also revealed that young people bore the brunt of the previous quarter's unemployment crisis.

The report shows that non-agricultural formal sector employment declined: 14,000 jobs were shed between March and June, indicating a 0.1% decrease. Total formal employment decreased by 10.425 million in mid-2026 from 10.439 million in March, while full-time employment decreased by 0.4% to 9.33 million — down 1% when compared to the previous year.

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Youth unemployment reaches 5 million

The figures paint a particularly stark picture for young South Africans. Unemployment among those aged 15 to 34 grew by 264,000 to reach 5 million, pushing the youth unemployment rate to 47.4%. Over the 12-month period from June 2025 to June 2026, total employment fell by 95,000 jobs, representing a 0.9% annual decline.

Manufacturing and business services bear the brunt

Manufacturing recorded the steepest quarterly losses, shedding 20,000 jobs — a 1.6% contraction. Business services lost 13,000 positions, trade shed 8,000, and the transport sector lost 5,000. Partial relief came from community services, which added 29,000 jobs, while electricity, mining, and construction each gained 1,000 positions.

Part-time employment bucked the trend, rising by 2.4% quarter-on-quarter to 1.095 million. However, gross employee earnings fell by R4.8 billion, a 0.5% decline, to R1.025 trillion.

The deterioration in employment coincided with a 0.2% contraction in South Africa's GDP during the second quarter. Statistics South Africa noted that higher input costs linked to global energy price fluctuations have weighed on business confidence and reduced hiring activity across several sectors.

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Stats SA posted a video of the rise in unemployment on Facebook. View it here:

Expert revels scale of unemployment

In a related article, Briefly News reported on South Africa’s unemployment crisis, which has left more than 8.1 million people without work and pushed the expanded unemployment rate to 43.7%. Even strong economic growth may take about 20 years to significantly reduce unemployment, according to a Wits University researcher.

Source: Briefly News