South Africa

South AfricaEmployment

ZA desk: South Africa first; United States, United Kingdom, euro area, Australia and New Zealand alongside.

37.58%

−0.05 pp

As of 2025 | % of population ages 15+

Mean
41.55%
Median
43.29%
Min
34.33% 2021
Max
44.98% 1996
YearValue
202537.58%
202437.63%
202337.36%
202235.70%
202134.33%
202035.78%
201939.53%
201840.32%
201740.39%
201640.20%
201540.86%
201440.04%
201340.04%
201239.52%
201139.32%
201039.37%
200941.26%
200843.29%
200743.44%
200643.51%
200543.52%
200443.59%
200343.69%
200243.94%
#CountryEmploymentChangeYear
29New Zealand66.78%−0.44 pp202543Australia63.82%−0.27 pp2025
61China61.57%−0.36 pp2025
81United States59.11%−0.35 pp202587United Kingdom58.46%−0.41 pp2025128Euro area53.39%−0.26 pp2025
129India53.31%−0.01 pp2025
172South Africa37.58%−0.05 pp2025

What the employment-to-population ratio is

The employment-to-population ratio is employed people as a percent of the population ages 15+ (SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.ZS). It does not condition on being in the labour force. Latest: 37.58% in 2025.

It moves with both jobs and demography. From 1991 to 2025 (35 years): mean 41.55%, median 43.29%; low 34.33% (2021), high 44.98% (1996).

Source: World Bank Open Data. Licence: CC BY 4.0 (terms).