According to TradingEconomics.com, South Africa’s unemployment rate has surpassed the 30 percent mark.
Under 10 000 jobs are currently advertised for South Africans on Gumtree
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Although leading economists remain pessimistic about the job climate in South Africa due to the turbulent economic status attributed due to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, Gumtree has a report that indicates a rise in job opportunities.
Claire Cobbledick, general manager at Gumtree South Africa explains that the current pandemic is not all doom and gloom when it comes to job opportunities in the country.
“The Corona-coaster, as we have dubbed it, is a constant ride of highs and lows, but our internal data indicates some encouraging markers on the job vacancy front,” she says.
Cobbledick claims that in 2019, Gumtree recorded approximately one hundred thousand employment opportunities on the site.
Currently, Gumtree reports that there are just under 10 000 live jobs advertised on the website, from a range of industries. Cobbledick also indicated that she is expecting a rise in job opportunities in the coming months.
The top 10 job specs on Gumtree currently
- 1,477 sales jobs
- 961 jobs in construction and trade
- 614 driving and logistics positions
- 526 accounting and finance jobs
- 514 manufacturing jobs
- 505 general work opportunities
- 468 healthcare and nursing jobs
- 445 IT and tech roles
- 413 advertising and marketing opportunities, and
- 381 admin jobs.
The importance of SME’s
Barrie Swart, Head of Operations at Gumtree explains that an effective way to reboot the economy is to support local small businesses.
“The best way to stimulate the economy is by supporting SMEs (small to medium enterprises).”
Data gathered before the Covid-19 pandemic indicates that 525 000 SMEs employ a reported six-million South Africans. Unfortunately due to the economic impacts of Covid-19, this is expected to have a knock-on effect for those employed by SMEs.
Swart comments on the popular platform as a tool for boosting job creation in the country.
“Gumtree offers a great way for companies that have vacancies to connect with people who are looking for new employment opportunities. We believe our technology supports our communities by streamlining the recruitment and job-seeking processes, and helps small businesses to keep going – and even growing – during this unusual business period.”
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