According to Statistics SA's quarterly employment statistics (QES) survey, the number of people employed in the formal non agricultural business sector grew by about 131 000 from March (6.945 million employees) to June (7.076 million employees), an increase of 1.9 percent.
Gross earnings paid to employees during the quarter to June amounted to R151.981 billion, an increase of R5.535 billion, or 3.8 percent, compared with the three months to March.
This followed a decrease in both the number of people employed and their gross earnings between the quarter to December and the quarter to March. From one period to the next, the number of employees fell by 2.1 percent, while gross earnings fell by 8.3 percent.
The QES survey covers a sample of about 24 000 private and public enterprises in the formal non-agricultural business sector. Just over 90 percent of enterprises sampled responded to the questionnaire for the quarter to June.
The survey is designed to establish the number of persons employed in the business as at the end of the reference quarter; and their gross earnings, bonuses, overtime payments and severance, termination and redundancy benefits during the quarter.
The QES survey replaces the survey of employment and earnings (SEE), which was discontinued from June. While the SEE covered businesses registered for VAT with annual turnovers of R300 000 or more, the QES covers employing enterprises that are registered for income tax. This results in better coverage of small businesses not registered for VAT.
Community, social and personal services.
With the exception of electricity, gas and water supply, where employment remained constant, all economic sectors reflected increases in employment between the end of March and the end of June.
The biggest increase was in the construction industry, with an additional 46 000 employees, or 12.3 percent, in June compared with March. In the wholesale and retail trade there was a quarterly increase of 29 000 employees (2.2 percent), followed by the financial and business services industry, with a quarterly increase of 22 000 employees (1.5 percent).
Manufacturing had an increase of 14 000 employees, (1.2 percent), while community, social and personal services reported an increase of 11 000 employees (0.6 percent).
The transport, storage and communication industry showed an increase of 8 000 employees (2.6 percent), and in mining and quarrying an additional 1 000 people (0.2 percent) were employed.
In terms of gross employee earnings, all eight sectors reported increases between the quarter to March and the quarter to June.
These ranged from an increase of 47.9 percent, or R875 million, in electricity, gas and water supply (probably due to annual salary increases, performance bonuses and commission paid during the June quarter) down to the lowest percentage increase of 0.2 percent, or R47 million, in manufacturing. Construction rose 16.4 percent, or R765 million, while the rest added less than 10 percent. The biggest increase in rand terms was for personal and social services, where earnings rose R1.591 billion (3.5 percent).
After the generally negative changes recorded between the quarter to December and the quarter to March, the increases to June brought the number of employees and their gross earnings close to December 2004 levels.
The latest QES shows increases in both employment and gross earnings for all eight sectors, apart from electricity, gas and water supply, where employment remained stable.
This appears compatible with estimates of growth in gross domestic product, which have risen from 3.5 percent in the first quarter to 4.8 percent in the second quarter.
Percentage change -2.1 -8.
Percentage change +1.9 +3.