• Rise in unemployment from 31.2% to 32.5%.
• Signs of resilience that government must build on.
• Premier must commit to creating 10 000 job opportunities for young people.
Please note Hannah Lidgett, MPL sound bite in English
This weeks’ Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) reveals a sobering picture for KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), with the province’s official unemployment rate rising from 31.2% to 32.5% in the second quarter of 2026.
According to the survey, 76 000 more people were unemployed compared to the previous quarter. Particularly concerning is non-metro KZN, where unemployment increased by 91 000 and the unemployment rate increased to 40.2%.
Despite these alarming figures, there are signs of resilience that government must build on. Overall employment in KZN remained relatively stable at approximately 2.725 million, while the survey estimates that formal-sector employment increased by around 54 000. This shift towards formal employment is encouraging.
Nationally, construction was one of only three industries to record quarterly employment growth, adding approximately 39 000 jobs. This reinforces the enormous potential of infrastructure investment as an employment catalyst. Public Works and Infrastructure Minister, the DA’s Dean Macpherson and his KZN counterpart, MEC Martin Meyer are already driving programmes aimed at turning infrastructure expenditure and Extended Public Works Programme (EPWP) opportunities into pathways towards sustainable long-term employment.
The DA as a responsible partner within KZN’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU), reiterates our call for Premier, Thami Ntuli, to commit to creating 10 000 opportunities for young people through a co-ordinated and strategic cross-departmental jobs drive, alongside greater support for small businesses, investment, skills development and infrastructure, particularly in rural areas.
KZN’s GPU must now pull in the same direction to urgently address unemployment in our province.