South Africa’s Unemployment Rate Dips to 31.9% as Economy Adds 248,000 Jobs
In a significant economic turnaround, South Africa’s official unemployment rate fell to 31.9% in the third quarter of 2025, a notable drop of 1.3 percentage points from the previous quarter’s 33.2%. The improvement is directly attributed to the creation of 248,000 new jobs, boosting the total number of employed individuals to 17.1 million.
Sectors Driving Employment Growth
The job gains were widespread across key sectors of the economy. The formal sector remained the largest employer, providing work for approximately 12 million people. It was closely supported by the informal sector, which employed around 4 million, and private households, which accounted for 1.1 million jobs. This multi-faceted growth suggests a resilient, if still recovering, labor market.
Winners and Losers in the Job Market
A closer look at the industry-level data reveals a story of two economies. On one hand, the construction industry led the charge with a remarkable 130,000 new positions. This was followed by robust growth in community and social services, which added 116,000 jobs, and the trade sector, which saw an increase of 108,000.
On the other hand, several key industries faced substantial headwinds. Manufacturing bore the brunt of the losses, shedding 62,000 jobs. The finance sector was not far behind, losing 54,000 positions, while utilities and transport contracted by 30,000 and 3,000 jobs, respectively.
A Shrinking Labor Force and Evolving Terminology
Presenting the Quarterly Labour Force Survey results, Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke reported that the number of unemployed people decreased by 360,000, bringing the total to 8 million. However, this positive news comes with a caveat: the overall labor force itself contracted by 112,000 people, or 0.4%.
“As a result, the overall labor force shrank by 112,000 between the second and third quarters of 2025,” Maluleke stated during a media briefing on Tuesday.
In a move to modernize its reporting, Statistics South Africa also announced updated terminology. The agency has replaced the term “not economically active” population with the more precise “outside the labor force,” and has introduced additional classifications related to the “potential labor force” to provide a more nuanced picture of the country’s employment landscape.
Source: Statistics South Africa Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) Q3:2025.