Statistician-General blames legislation for 15-year-olds being included in Labour Force Survey

Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke has blamed the country’s legislation for 15-year-olds being included in the Labour Force Survey, conducted by Statistics South Africa, to document unemployment levels in the country.

South Africa’s unemployment rate has decreased by 0.8% to 34.5% in the first quarter of this year, compared to 35.3% in the third quarter of last year.

Maluleke says the law is clear on the matter of 15-year-olds.

“At Stats SA we don’t make the laws, the law is very clear, section 43,1(a) of the basic conditions of employment in South Africa, says it is illegal to hire any person under the age of 15, 14-years or younger. So it means when you are 15-years-old and above it’s not illegal in South Africa. Now, we include them, only when they are not at school.”

Below is the full interview with Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke:

SA still faces unemployment crisis

Meanwhile, mining and labour analyst Mamokgethi Molopyane says while there have been some green shoots in labour market activity, South Africa still faces an unemployment crisis.

Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey indicates that 370 000 jobs were gained between the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022.

Youth unemployment on the rise among those with post-matric qualifications

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