"Cosatu is a stumbling block to South Africa's growth and prosperity"
THE IFP Youth Brigade has expressed concern about the contents of the South Africa Economic Update: Inequality of Opportunity report released by the World Bank earlier this week.
The Labour Force Survey on the first quarter of 2012 painted an equally grim picture earlier this year.
Both these reports highlight the extent of the crisis in South Africa, with unemployment standing at a staggering 25.2%, up from 23.9%. This percentage gallops even higher to 33% when discouraged job-seekers are accounted for.
The levels of inequality in the country are also very high; the World Bank reported that the top 10% of the population accounted for 58% of South Africa's income, while the bottom 10% accounted for just 0.5% of income.
"The solution to this cancer of continued inequality should be creating sustainable job opportunities, the education system needs to be dramatically improved such that it responds to the needs of the job market and our labour laws must be relaxed," IFP Youth Brigade national chairman Mkhuleko Hlengwa said.
"It is the youth, who constitute 72% of those unemployed, that bear the brutal brunt of unemployment, inequality and poverty.
"Urgent intervention is required for the sake of young South Africans. The problem is compounded further by the fact that in the first quarter, the economy shed 75,000 jobs."
Hlengwa blamed the high unemployment level on what it describes as "rigid labour laws".
"Our laws simply need to be revised because as they stand, they do not create a conducive environment for job creation.
"We must bring about reform to our labour legislation to increase the flexibility in the labour market."
Hlengwa also called for the immediate implementation of the Youth Wage Subsidy.
He said continued delay in implementing the Youth Wage Subsidy further compounded the problem of unemployment, inequality and poverty.
The IFP youth leader called on president Jacob Zuma to explain why the subsidy had not been implemented "and more importantly when it will be implemented.
"It is extremely selfish of Cosatu, particularly when its core interest is not about job creation but rather about job protection, to frustrate the urgent implementation of the Youth Wage Subsidy when the country is in such crisis.
"Cosatu is a stumbling block to South Africa's growth and prosperity; it is a Mafia organisation hellbent on protecting the interests of a few working people at the expense of millions of South Africans who simply want jobs, with a hope to work their way out of poverty and inequality."
IFP upset by World Bank's report
"Cosatu is a stumbling block to South Africa's growth and prosperity"
THE IFP Youth Brigade has expressed concern about the contents of the South Africa Economic Update: Inequality of Opportunity report released by the World Bank earlier this week.
The Labour Force Survey on the first quarter of 2012 painted an equally grim picture earlier this year.
Both these reports highlight the extent of the crisis in South Africa, with unemployment standing at a staggering 25.2%, up from 23.9%. This percentage gallops even higher to 33% when discouraged job-seekers are accounted for.
The levels of inequality in the country are also very high; the World Bank reported that the top 10% of the population accounted for 58% of South Africa's income, while the bottom 10% accounted for just 0.5% of income.
"The solution to this cancer of continued inequality should be creating sustainable job opportunities, the education system needs to be dramatically improved such that it responds to the needs of the job market and our labour laws must be relaxed," IFP Youth Brigade national chairman Mkhuleko Hlengwa said.
"It is the youth, who constitute 72% of those unemployed, that bear the brutal brunt of unemployment, inequality and poverty.
"Urgent intervention is required for the sake of young South Africans. The problem is compounded further by the fact that in the first quarter, the economy shed 75,000 jobs."
Hlengwa blamed the high unemployment level on what it describes as "rigid labour laws".
"Our laws simply need to be revised because as they stand, they do not create a conducive environment for job creation.
"We must bring about reform to our labour legislation to increase the flexibility in the labour market."
Hlengwa also called for the immediate implementation of the Youth Wage Subsidy.
He said continued delay in implementing the Youth Wage Subsidy further compounded the problem of unemployment, inequality and poverty.
The IFP youth leader called on president Jacob Zuma to explain why the subsidy had not been implemented "and more importantly when it will be implemented.
"It is extremely selfish of Cosatu, particularly when its core interest is not about job creation but rather about job protection, to frustrate the urgent implementation of the Youth Wage Subsidy when the country is in such crisis.
"Cosatu is a stumbling block to South Africa's growth and prosperity; it is a Mafia organisation hellbent on protecting the interests of a few working people at the expense of millions of South Africans who simply want jobs, with a hope to work their way out of poverty and inequality."
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending
Latest Videos