Mbalo Brief – September 2013
South Africa has recently been plagued by a series of strikes. As collective wage negotiations got underway, employers and employees came to a deadlock. Mining, car manufacturing and City Power workers were among some of the workers who downed their tools during this time. Although many would agree that this year’s ‘strike season’, as some call it, was not read more »
Mbalo Brief – August 2013
Approximately 57 years ago, on 9 August 1956, more than 20 000 heroines took it upon themselves to challenge those who were imposing racist and unjust laws upon them. Women of all races joined forces under the leadership of Lillian Ngoyi, Rahima Moosa, Helen Joseph, Sophia de Bruyn, Frances Baard, Bertha Gxowa and Albertina Sisulu read more »
Education is key to better labour market outcomes
Employment increased by 100 000 between the 1st and 2nd quarters of 2013. Despite this, the increase in unemployment by 122 000 resulted in an increase of 0,4 of a percentage point in the unemployment rate – from 25,2% to 25,6% between the two quarters. Year-on-year, employment rose by 274 000 while unemployment rose by 254 000. Education plays read more »
Empowering communities through statistics
Do you know how many people live in your community? How many are unemployed? Do you know how many households in your area have access to safe water, electricity and refuse removal? While information at a national level can be interesting, what people really want is to know about the place where they live. To read more »
What is GDP and its impact?
Government and all businesses, from small to multinational, need the facts on the economy that this release provides. Aneen Jordaan reports The gross domestic product (GDP) of a country is one of the main indicators used to measure the performance of a country’s economy. The Macmillan dictionary defines economy as the system by which a read more »
The world of work
Labour market information relates to three groups of individuals, those that are employed, those that are unemployed and those that are not economically active (e.g. homemakers, retirees and full-time students who do not wish to work). The most recent QLFS results show that in the first quarter of 2013, of the total population in the read more »
Mbalo Brief – July 2013
The month of July is a special month to many people all over the world because it marks the last half of the year. Many consider this month as a chance to step back and evaluate their achievements and goals for the year. What most people do not know about July is that it starts read more »
Mbalo Brief – June 2013
The month of June is known for cold weather conditions as it marks the beginning of the winter season. To South Africans, June is known as “Youth Month” as it commemorates the youth that raised their voices against the previous government’s education policies. This is the month in which the Soweto uprising occurred 37 years read more »