Durban — The Assembly of the Unemployed (AoU) has indicated that high levels of unemployment exacerbate existing disparities.
It also called on the South African government to urgently invest in job-creation alternatives in order to address the unemployment crisis that has a choke-hold on the country.
On Tuesday, Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey revealed that more than 13 million South Africans were jobless – the highest in the world – indicating that the number of unemployed persons in the first quarter of 2023 increased by 179 000 compared with Q4: 2022.
The AoU said the survey painted a bleak picture by revealing that over 13 million people were not economically active, a staggering figure that mirrored the country’s employment crisis.
“By investing in job-creating alternatives, the government can help reduce the unemployment rate and improve social and economic outcomes for individuals and communities,” the AoU said.
“High levels of unemployment exacerbate existing disparities and create social divisions leading to negative social and economic consequences, such as increased poverty, crime rates and social unrest just like we witnessed with the July 2021 riots. The government’s austerity agenda is also negatively impacting South Africans.”
The AoU continued its call on the government to adopt potential job-creating alternatives to address the unemployment crisis:
1. Invest in job-creating alternatives: Develop a low-carbon reindustrialisation programme that can create millions of jobs aimed at addressing climate change. Here we can invest in public energy, public transport, housing and transforming agriculture. This includes the production of socially-owned renewable energy and the manufacturing of solar PV and wind infrastructure.
2. Basic Income Grant: These staggering figures are an indication that there’s an urgent need for the introduction of a decent basic income grant of at least R1 500 per month which should have been introduced long ago as a safety net for the poor who are grappling with the unemployment crisis. This will not only improve people’s standard of living and lift them from starvation, but it can help to stimulate the local economy and improve productivity – which is where jobs are created. When more people have more money to spend, it can drive demand for goods and services and ultimately contribute to economic growth.
3. Government must become the employer of last resort: The government must employ everyone willing and able to work and pay them a living wage. There is lots of work to be done and people learn by doing. The expanded public works can be the basis to do this, but it needs to be transformed and improved in terms of the working conditions. This means permanent employment at a living wage.
This also means expanding the public sector as we need many more teachers, healthcare and municipal workers. The government must do away with the current trend of outsourcing the provision of local services to tenderpreneurs as it is one of the main drivers that lead to the inability of municipalities to create jobs.
“We call on the government to create and build the capacity of municipalities and stop outsourcing and tendering all essential projects. This can also help develop the skills and talent of the workforce. This can include training programmes, apprenticeships and other initiatives that help people gain new skills and experience that can be valuable in the job market.”
4. Tax the rich: The government must implement a progressive net wealth tax of between 3 and 7%, increase personal income tax rates on the rich, stop profit shifting and wage evasion and use the surpluses of the government employees’ pension to invest in a re-industrialisation programme.
“We believe that industrial sectors have the potential to create a significant number of jobs, including both skilled and unskilled positions. Employment losses were recorded in Mpumalanga, North West and Free State; re-industrialisation can help address regional inequalities, reduce migration from rural to urban areas and promote balanced development across the country.”
The AoU said: “If the government fails to look at the alternatives, the job crisis will worsen which is why it is urgent for the government to take the drastic measures this crisis requires.”
It added that the figures also indicate that there was an increase in time-related underemployment and young people experienced underemployment at far higher rates than older persons.
“Sadly, the youth remain vulnerable in the labour market and are excluded from enjoying the fruits of our democracy. We call on the youth to unite and stand up against the current regime’s failures. We cannot continue with rhetoric while we are sitting with a ticking time bomb,” the AoU said.
Meanwhile, eThekwini Municipality said its remarkable achievement in combating unemployment was unveiled in the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, showing a staggering year-on-year decline of 9% in the City’s unemployment rate.
“This extraordinary feat not only sets a new standard, but also positions eThekwini as the leading metro in terms of reducing strict unemployment, surpassing all other South African cities.”
WhatsApp your views on this story at 071 485 7995.
Daily News