Employees in South Africa
South Africa: Employees was 14,166 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Employees in South Africa, 2000–2024
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 14,166 for employees in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 7.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employees in South Africa peaked at 14,166 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 8,116, in 2001.
That places South Africa 22nd out of 114 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Employees in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 8,414 | — |
| 2001 | 8,116 | -3.5% |
| 2002 | 8,133 | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 8,242 | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 8,423 | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 8,763 | +4.0% |
| 2006 | 8,998 | +2.7% |
| 2007 | 9,594 | +6.6% |
| 2008 | 12,400 | +29.2% |
| 2009 | 12,110 | -2.3% |
| 2010 | 11,730 | -3.1% |
| 2011 | 11,969 | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 12,307 | +2.8% |
| 2013 | 12,793 | +3.9% |
| 2014 | 13,153 | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 13,605 | +3.4% |
| 2016 | 13,554 | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 13,832 | +2.1% |
| 2018 | 14,023 | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 13,863 | -1.1% |
| 2020 | 12,703 | -8.4% |
| 2021 | 12,357 | -2.7% |
| 2022 | 13,070 | +5.8% |
| 2023 | 14,007 | +7.2% |
| 2024 | 14,166 | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 9,319 | 8,116 | 12,400 | 10 |
| 2010s | 13,083 | 11,730 | 14,023 | 10 |
| 2020s | 13,261 | 12,357 | 14,166 | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More work & labour data for South Africa
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.2264 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.242 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.2122 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.23 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.8748 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 58,057 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 14,698 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 49,126 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 45,189 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 94,314 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employees in South Africa?
- Employees in South Africa was 14,166 in 2024, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest employees recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 14,166 in 2024.
- What is the lowest employees recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 8,116 in 2001.
- How does South Africa rank for employees?
- South Africa ranks 22nd out of 114 countries with data for 2024.
- Is employees rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Employees. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. Employees are all those workers who hold paid employment jobs, which are those where the incumbents hold employment contracts which give them a basic remuneration not directly dependent upon the revenue of the unit for which they work. Data disaggregated by economic activity are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) available for that year. Data may have been regrouped from national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISIC. Data disaggregated by occupation are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Data may have been regrouped from the national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCO. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.