By South Africa’s formal non-agricultural sector experienced a slight contraction in the second quarter of 2026, driven primarily by pullbacks in manufacturing, business services, trade, and transport.
According to the latest Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) survey released by Stats South Africa, total employment decreased by 14,000 jobs (or -0,1%) quarter-on-quarter, bringing total employment down from 10,439,000 in March 2026 to 10,425,000 in June 2026.
The downturn extends a broader annual trend, with total employment falling by 95,000 jobs (or -0,9%) year-on-year between June 2025 and June 2026.
Industry Breakdown: Job Losses Outweigh Gains
The quarterly contraction was heavily concentrated in key productive sectors. Manufacturing bore the brunt of the losses, shedding 20,000 jobs (-1,6%). This was followed by business services, which decreased by 13,000 (-0,5%), trade down by 8,000 (-0,3%), and transport which contracted by 5,000 (-1,1%).
Conversely, the community services sector provided a vital cushion, expanding employment by 29,000 jobs (1,0%). Minor gains were also registered across electricity, mining, and construction, each ticking up by 1,000 jobs.
Full-Time vs. Part-Time Dynamics
A closer look at employment types reveals a distinct divergence between full-time and part-time positions:
- Full-Time Employment: Full-time positions fell by 40,000 (or -0,4%) quarter-on-quarter, dropping from 9,370,000 in March 2026 to 9,330,000 in June 2026. On an annual basis, full-time employment decreased by 96,000 (-1,0%) compared to June 2025.
- Part-Time Employment: In contrast, part-time work expanded, growing by 26,000 jobs (or 2,4%) to reach 1,095,000 in June 2026, up from 1,069,000 in March 2026. This expansion was propelled largely by community services, which added 32,000 part-time roles (7,4%). Year-on-year, part-time employment remained relatively stable, edging up by 1,000 jobs (0,1%).
Earnings and Compensation Realities
Financial indicators painted a multifaceted picture of worker compensation during the period. Gross earnings paid to employees dropped by R4,8 billion (-0,5%), shifting from R1,029 trillion in March 2025 to R1,025 trillion in June 2026, weighed down by contractions in business services, mining, and transport. However, on a year-on-year comparison, gross earnings rose by R35,1 billion (3,5%).
Basic salaries and wages showed resilience, expanding by R15,5 billion (1,7%) from R914,6 billion in March 2026 to R930,1 billion in June 2026. Year-on-year basic wages grew by R26,7 billion (3,0%).
Meanwhile, bonus payments experienced a sharp seasonal pullback, dropping by R23 billion (-26,9%) from R85,8 billion in March 2025 to R62,8 billion in June 2026. Conversely, overtime pay increased by R2,7 billion (9,3%) to reach R32,1 billion.
On an individual level, average monthly earnings paid to employees increased by 2,6%, moving from R29,825 in February 2026 to R30,611 in May 2026, representing a 4,1% increase year-on-year. As the economy navigates mixed signals across industrial sectors, labour market watchers will look to upcoming quarters to see if community services can continue absorbing job losses from manufacturing and trade.
