South Africa’s labour market has undergone a notable transformation in the manner in which people are employed, with short-hour and part-time employment expanding at a considerably faster pace than the standard 40-hour working week over the course of the past 16 years.
Key Takeaways
- Full-time work still leads: Standard employment of 40 to 45 hours a week remains the dominant category, accounting for about 57% of all employed people in South Africa.
- Short-hour work is growing fastest: Employment under 15 hours a week rose by 80.2% since 2010, and 15-to-29-hour work rose by 40.1%, both far outpacing overall employment growth of 21.3%.
- Underemployment, not unemployment, is the hidden issue: A large share of workers have jobs but not enough hours, with the broadest underutilisation measure (LU4) sitting at 46.3%.
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Labour Market Deterioration in Q2 2026
The QLFS report revealed that the labour market weakened during the second quarter of 2026, with employment declining and unemployment climbing.
Between April and June, the number of employed individuals dropped by 16,000, bringing the total down to 16.74 million, whilst the number of unemployed individuals rose by 345,000, reaching 8.5 million.
Consequently, the official unemployment rate climbed by 0.9 percentage points to reach 33.6%, an increase from 32.7% recorded in the first quarter of 2026.
South Africa’s official unemployment rate is among the highest in the world, far exceeding the global average of around 5% to 6% reported by the International Labour Organisation.
Broader Measures of Labour Market Distress
This deterioration is likewise reflected in the wider indicators of labour-market distress that Stats SA tracks. The labour force participation rate edged up slightly to 59.6%, whereas the employment-to-population figure, also referred to as the absorption rate, fell to 39.6%.
The broader underutilisation measures demonstrate that the difficulty extends well beyond those who are officially classified as unemployed:
- The LU2 rate, which combines unemployment together with time-related underemployment, reached 36.6%.
- LU3, which incorporates the unemployed alongside people who are available for work but are not actively searching for it, stood at 43.8%.
- The broadest measure, LU4, which captures the total extent of labour underutilisation, remained exceptionally high at 46.3%.
LU stands for “labour underutilisation”. Economists use these tiered measures (LU1 to LU4) because the standard unemployment rate alone can understate the true scale of joblessness, as it excludes discouraged workseekers and the underemployed.
A Longer-Term Shift in Working Hours
The longer-term figures relating to working hours offer an important indication of how the structure of employment in South Africa has changed over time.
Since the first quarter of 2010, the number of people working fewer than 15 hours per week has risen from 253,000 to 456,000 by the second quarter of 2026. This represents an increase of 80.2%.
The number of people working between 15 and 29 hours per week has also grown substantially, rising from 812,000 in 2010 to 1.14 million in 2026, marking a 40.1% increase.
Working fewer than 15 hours a week is sometimes referred to internationally as “marginal part-time work”, and it is often associated with informal or casual employment arrangements such as gig work, freelancing or seasonal labour.
These increases are significant precisely because they have outpaced the overall rate of employment growth recorded over the same period. They also contribute directly towards time-related underemployment.
Stats SA defines individuals in time-related underemployment as employed people “who were willing and available to work additional hours, whose total number of hours actually worked during the reference period was below 35 hours per week”.
This means that simply having a job does not necessarily translate into having sufficient work, or into earning an adequate income.
Working Hours: 2010 vs 2026 at a Glance
The table below sets out this dramatic shift, presenting all figures in millions of persons, rounded to two decimal places:
| Working Hours | Q1 2010 (Millions of Persons) | Q2 2026 (Millions of Persons) | Net Change (Millions of Persons) | % Change (2010 to 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 15 Hours | 0.25 | 0.46 | +0.21 | +80.2% |
| 15 to 29 Hours | 0.81 | 1.14 | +0.33 | +40.1% |
| 30 to 39 Hours | 1.03 | 1.09 | +0.06 | +5.8% |
| 40 to 45 Hours (Standard) | 7.48 | 9.53 | +2.05 | +27.4% |
| More than 45 Hours | 4.22 | 4.53 | +0.31 | +7.3% |
| Total Employment | 13.80 | 16.74 | +2.94 | +21.3% |
The two fastest-growing categories, “less than 15 hours” and “15 to 29 hours”, are also the two smallest in absolute terms, which is why even modest increases in headcount translate into such large percentage changes.
Not About Finding a Job, It’s About Finding Enough Hours of Work
The growth witnessed in shorter-hour employment suggests that an increasing number of workers may be working fewer hours than they would actually prefer.
At the same time, standard full-time employment continues to remain the dominant form of work across the country. The number of people working between 40 and 45 hours per week increased from 7.48 million in the first quarter of 2010 to 9.53 million in the second quarter of 2026.
That amounts to growth of 2.05 million jobs, or 27.4%, with this particular category accounting for approximately 57% of all employed people in the latest quarter.
The Slow Growth of Overtime-Length Work
However, the number of people working more than 45 hours per week has grown at a considerably slower pace. It rose from 4.22 million in 2010 to 4.53 million in 2026, representing growth of only 7.3%.
If you are currently in a part-time role and want more hours, Stats SA’s definition of “time-related underemployment” specifically applies to those working under 35 hours a week who are willing and available to work more, so this group is formally tracked and reported on, not simply assumed.
The overall picture that emerges is one of structural change in South Africa’s working hours, with standard full-time employment continuing to dominate the labour market, even as shorter-hour work expands at a considerably faster rate by comparison.
For many workers across South Africa, therefore, the challenge is not necessarily one of finding a job at all, but rather one of finding enough hours of work to sustain a living.
Conclusion
South Africa’s labour market tells a story of contrasts, where standard full-time employment remains firmly in the majority even as short-hour work expands at a pace that far outstrips overall job growth. Rising unemployment and underutilisation figures for the second quarter of 2026 underline that the challenge facing many South Africans is no longer solely about securing a job, but about securing enough hours within that job to earn a sustainable income. As this structural shift continues, it points to a labour market that is increasingly defined not just by who is working, but by how much they are working.
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