The unemployment rate in South Africa has increased by 1.3 percentage points to 32.7% in the first quarter of 2026, as 301,000 people lost their jobs.
The official jobless rate has now been above 30% for more than five years and is among the highest in the world.
According to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) from Stats SA, the number of employed persons decreased by 345,000 in the first quarter of the year, bringing the total to 16.8 million.
Meanwhile, the number of unemployed people increased by 301,000. This resulted in a net decrease of 44,000 (0.2%) in the country’s labour force.
Because of these changes, the official unemployment rate increased by 1.3 percentage points to 32.7% for the quarter, up from 31.4% in the fourth quarter of 2025.
According to Stats SA, discouraged job-seekers increased by 178,000 to 3.9 million; other available job-seekers increased by 55,000 to 910,000, and unavailable job-seekers increased by 6,000 to 49,000.
Those outside the labour force for other reasons decreased by 75,000 to 12.4 million.
In addition to the unemployment rate, other measures of labour underutilisation were also used.
The combined rate of unemployment and time-related underemployment increased by 1.6 percentage points to 35.9%.
The combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force (formerly tracked as the expanded unemployment rate) increased by 1.6 percentage points to 43.7% in the first quarter.
The composite measure of labour underutilisation, which combines time-related underemployment, unemployment and potential labour force as a proportion of the extended labour force, was 46.3%.
Stats SA noted that these labour underutilisation measures highlight people in different situations and with different degrees of attachment to the labour market.
The number of employed persons decreased in seven of the ten industries.
The largest decreases in employment were recorded in the Community and social services industry (206,000), followed by Construction (110,000), Transport (30,000) and Private households (28,000).
Employment increased in Manufacturing (38,000), followed by Mining (32,000) and Agriculture (10,000).
South Africa unemployment data Q1 2026
