A surge in part-time employment, especially in the community services sector, helped South Africa’s formal job market grow modestly in the third quarter, despite a continued slide in full-time positions, Stats SA said on Thursday. The Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) report shows that total formal non-agricultural employment rose by 29,000 jobs quarter on quarter (a 0.3% increase from June to September) bringing the total to 10.55-million. The increase was largely driven by 50,000 new part-time jobs, with community services alone accounting for 42,000, followed by gains in trade and business services.
Full-time employment declined by 21,000, led by job cuts in business services (-18,000) and manufacturing (-4,000). Community services and trade also shed a small number of full-time jobs, while mining and construction registered modest gains. Despite the third quarter’s job growth, overall employment remains lower than a year ago, down by 79,000 jobs or 0.7% between September 2024 and September 2025.
The report also reflects modest growth in employee earnings. Gross earnings rose by R10.7bn (1.1%) quarter on quarter to reach R1-trillion, driven by gains in business services, community services, mining, manufacturing, electricity and construction. Only transport and trade recorded declines.
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Basic salaries and wages increased 0.9% to R911.2bn, while bonus payments rose sharply by R6.2bn (10.9%), primarily due to payouts in business and community services. In contrast, overtime pay declined by R3.3bn (-11.1%), with cuts across all major sectors. Stats SA also reported a 0.3% increase in average monthly earnings, from R29,402 in May to R29,490 in August. Year on year, earnings grew by 4.3%, outpacing the headline inflation rate over the same period.
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