A South African tragedy: The untapped power of unemployed youth

Looking at the entire working population, nearly half (expanded definition 46.6%, 12.5 million) of South Africans are unemployed (official rate 34.9%). There were 660,000 fewer employed South Africans from Q2 to Q3 of 2021.

These numbers intimately track the events and consequences of the July 2021 riots. Riots which saw 337 lives lost, hundreds of businesses across KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng looted and destroyed, and an estimated blow worth R50 billion to the South African economy, culminating these two provinces that suffered the worst job losses for the quarter.

The tragedy is: only one in three youth are working…or two in three youth are not

South Africa faces a myriad of socio-economic and structural challenges, from gender-based violence to low economic growth,  lack of access to quality education, infrastructure and services.

There is much work to be done. 

And yet, our young people – those who are supposed to be filled with passion and limitless energy – the ones who can do this work are locked out. 61% of youth aged 15-34 are unemployed, meaning South Africa is running on a mere 39% of its true potential.

Imagine the Springboks arriving to play a game against the All Blacks with only 39% of the team, while the rest are locked out of the stadium, unable to enter.

There is no winning. 

The tragedy is: more than half of South Africa’s women are unemployed

In September, we wrote about the disproportionate economic consequences of Covid-19 on women, using QLSF Q2:2021 and the recent NIDS-CRAM survey results. It was found that black women bore the harshest economic brunt, and a few months later all that’s changed are the numbers. 

Overall, more than half of South African women (51%, 6.4 million) are unemployed, which is an increase of 1.2 million from Q3:2020.  

The official unemployment rate among black African women is 41.3%, compared to 9.9% among white women, 25.2% among Indian/Asian women and 29.1% among coloured women.

We know that a woman’s salary holds immense power, not only affording her independence but goes further and feeds more mouths. This economic independence is only held by 49% of South African women.

88% of YES Youth come from grant-recipient households, and 91% have dependents, meaning the YES salary reaches farther and wider than the just the individual youth, rippling through families and communities.

The tragedy is: South Africa has lost 2.2 million jobs since January 2020

That’s 110,000 jobs shed per month. 

In January of 2020, we had 16.4 million jobs, and by the end of Q3 2021 (September), we sat with 14.2 million.

The direct repercussion of a loss of this magnitude is an economic demand that is shrinking – fewer and fewer people who can buy your products/services now and in the future as two-thirds of young people (your future customers) struggle to find work.

The reality is this is no longer just an economic crisis – it is everyone’s crisis. 

The power & potential lies with the unemployed youth

In a recent Daily Maverick article. Kate Philip proposed the Presidency’s Social Employment Fund as a possible solution, which aims to “support the considerable creativity, initiative and institutional capabilities that exist in the wider society to engage people in work that serves the common good,” says President Cyril Ramaphosa.

While this is a step in the right direction, the best results are realised when there is inter-sectoral collaboration. Through YES, the private sector can work directly with NGOs to tackle this crisis and get youth working. YES’s turnkey solution (the implementation partner model) works with 33 YES-vetted host partners across South Africa to place youth. 

In lieu of placing youth internally (to gain up to two levels up on the B-BBEE scorecard), a business can place youth with our host. The IPs are generally NGOs working in high-impact sectors communities, which means youth do not have to travel far for work and they can play an important part in building their own communities.

Some sectors YES host partner work in

Meaning your business can create critical youth jobs in sectors that “serve the common good”, and that integrate into your ESG/SDG strategies. 

These are sectors that are historically under-funded and under-resourced, but together Business SA and our unemployed youth can begin to capacitate them to co-create a future that works for all. 

Critically, we’ll be giving our youth meaningful work – work that can build their skill sets, self-esteem, CVs, careers and communities. 

YES and its 1,766 corporate partners have given critical first chances to over 68,188 young people (60% of whom are women), who continue to grasp every opportunity with both hands. This has seen R3.8 billion injected back into the economy through youth salaries, with no government funding.

These youth, who are dying to show the world their potential and what they can do, never fail to impress us and the hero companies who enable opportunities. 

Many YES corporates have very high absorption rates because they see the value these young people bring to their organisations when given a chance.

 “In these times of adversity, we require a young and capable team to maintain momentum,” says Adam Craker, CEO of consulting firm, IQBusiness. “[Of the YES Youth we took on last year], 94% of them have been offered full-time employment.”

How we view the unemployed needs a shift in perspective, as Philips puts it:

“Core to the social employment approach is the recognition that unemployed people in communities are a powerful resource for development, and that even where labour might not have a market value, it has — and can create — social value. More to the point: even where people’s labour may have no market value, people  have value — and have value to offer to their communities, through their actions and engagement.”

A shift in perspective from “burden” to “valuable potential” can change the trajectory of South Africa’s future.

There’s work to be done, and there are people that can do it.

How YES works

YES is a business-led collaboration that seeks out groundbreaking ways, through innovation and technological best practices, to reignite the economy and give youth a dignified first chance.

The YES 12-month quality work experience (QWE) equips unemployed youth with a toolkit to be a beacon of hope for their families, households and communities. The CV & reference letter they get at the end of their 12-months gives them a three times greater chance of an interview call-back. For a woman, these documents double the chances of her winning the job.

In return for giving youth QWEs, companies can receive up to two levels up on the B-BBEE scorecard. Companies can place youth internally, or externally through our turnkey solution, where your company can impact on its ESG and SDG strategies.

Join the movement

Sign up for YES and become a co-creator of a new, more inclusive economy. Get the other 61% working so tomorrow can, too.