UASA Media Release: 11 November 2025
Statement by Abigail Moyo, spokesperson of the trade union UASA:
South Africa’s official unemployment rate decreased by 1,3 percentage points from 33,2% in the second quarter of 2025 to 31,9% in the third quarter of 2025.
However, Stats SA made changes to certain of its definitions and the way it collates data outside the standard unemployment rate, resulting in a different view of the labour market, and the Q3:3025 estimates on informal employment in particular cannot be compared with the previous estimates.
Stats SA reported an increase of 248,000 in the number of employed persons to 17,1 million, while the number of unemployed persons decreased by 360,000 to 8,0 million.
In its Quarterly Labour Force Survey Q3:2025 results, StatsSA reported a decrease of 112 000 (0,4%) in the labour force between Q2:2025 and Q3:2025.
Discouraged jobseekers increased by 36,000 to 3,5 million, while other available jobseekers increased by 130,000 to 965,000, and unavailable jobseekers increased by 64,000 to 83,000.
This resulted in a total net increase of 230,000 to 4,5 million in the potential labour force, which refers to persons who are available to work but are not seeking employment, or who are unavailable but seeking employment.
The number of employed persons increased in eight provinces between Q2:2025 and Q3:2025. The most significant employment gains were recorded in the Western Cape (70,000), KwaZulu-Natal (54,000), Gauteng (51,000), Northwest (42,000) and Limpopo (40,000). Only the Eastern Cape recorded a 53,000 decrease in employment during the same period.
While UASA is pleased with the employment increase, more is necessary to draw the unemployed masses into the formal labour market so they can provide for their families, especially in the Eastern Cape.
Despite the improvement, the social and economic challenges that come with the high unemployment rate abound, including slow economic growth, high crime rates, inequality, and deteriorating infrastructure.
We urge the government to work with industry captains and other role players to create even more jobs.
For further enquiries or to set up a personal interview, contact Abigail Moyo at 065 170 0162.