Being young in SA is an extreme sport. Because of the structural nature of unemployment, young people often find themselves running in circles to find a job, with very little support. The work — and it is work — of getting hired requires time and resources, both financial and social, that most youth don’t have.
In a survey conducted among about 2,000 young people, Youth Capital found that about 40% of them spent up to R500 a month on transport, 42% spent up to R500 on data and an alarming 84% often had to choose between spending money on job-hunting or buying food. Not only does this mean that the average young South African needs at least R1,000 a month to look for a job, but it also means that job-seeking is not just about creating sustainable livelihoods — it’s about survival. Placing a young person in a position where they have to choose whether to eat or look for work is simply untenable.
Current unemployment initiatives have a strong focus on placement and work readiness, but what kind of interventions can we create for young people to ease the cost burden of job-seeking?
For starters, we need a strong investment in zero-rated job-seeking platforms. SAYouth.mobi is one of these platforms. Designed as a way to link young people with nearby work and learning opportunities, SAYouth.mobi is zero-rated across all mobile networks. The platform, part of the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative, is a positive step towards easing the cost of job-seeking, but still requires sizeable support to make a real change.
In this year’s state of the nation address, President Cyril Ramaphosa said about 2.3-million people were registered on SAYouth.mobi but only about 600,000 of them have been placed into work opportunities. The platform requires more private companies to invest in creating meaningful opportunities for young people.
Young people bounce from one entry level post to another, with slim prospects of gainful employment
“Meaningful” is the operative word, because we are embedded in an employment culture that has created a revolving door for internships — young people bounce from one entry level post to another, with slim prospects of gainful employment. This works in favour of the private sector, which drinks from an endless well of available young people. We have to move towards a culture that values and enriches the potential that can come from such a large youth cohort.
Addressing the high cost of job-seeking also means innovating in the way we hire people. If young people are spending close to R500 on transport, how can we adapt the recruitment process to make it less demanding?
The pandemic gave us an opportunity to digitally adapt the way we work, and the way we hire can follow suit. There is value in meeting young people where they are and supporting them in their employment journeys. Job interviews can be done online or even via WhatsApp. Companies should factor in a small data stipend for shortlisted candidates — not only does this show that you’re thinking about employment in a holistic way, but it will increase your appeal as a company that is committed to empowering young people, not exploiting them.
The most alarming part of our unemployment statistics is the section that deals with Neets (not in employment, education or training). The Quarterly Labour Force Survey reports that there were about 10.2-million people aged 15—24 at the end of the first quarter of the year, of which 37% fell into the Neet category.
These numbers should make us collectively fall over as a country. What are the implications — social, financial, political — of having close to 4-million people under the age of 24 who have exhausted their prospects and have given up? What does it mean for a democracy as young as ours when the most vibrant section of our population cannot imagine a successful future?
What does it mean for a democracy as young as ours when the most vibrant section of our population cannot imagine a successful future?
The link between education and unemployment cannot be understated. According to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey, of the 7.9-million unemployed, just over 50% did not have matric; 40% did have matric; and 2.8% were graduates. Tertiary education continues to be the best route to employment, especially for young people. A stronger investment in education is vital if we have any hope of creating sustainable livelihoods and growing our economy.
The education sector operates in ways that fundamentally exclude young people, black youth in particular. With the untenable cost of fees, deteriorating infrastructure, teachers who lack requisite support and a curriculum that is mismatched to the needs of both the local and global economy, there is need for urgent interventions that will cultivate an education system that is both responsive and inclusive.
Finally, we need to spring clean the value system on which we base our employment solutions. There is continued discussion about the disparity between the type of jobs available, the types of skills needed, and the livelihoods young people want to pursue. This has created a bottleneck; young people have to choose between pursuing their dreams or being employed. Is it possible to adjust the way we think about economic growth in a way that prioritises the aspirations of the labour force?
In elections, people don't go to the polls if none of the candidates appeal to them. The same is true in job-hunting. There is great benefit in creating systems that can adapt to people’s needs, instead of expecting people to adapt to rigid systems.
Youth in SA are more than decorative elements for Youth Day celebrations — we are an integral factor in our country’s development. Creating a policy and programming environment that understands and prioritises this is crucial if we are to have any hope for a future that works.
• Pillay is MD at Youth Lab, a think-tank that aims to create spaces for youth to engage on policy issues
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