Business Report writes that on Tuesday the government acknowledged that SA’s unemployment rate could surge to beyond 50% as a result of businesses taking strain from the coronavirus epidemic.
Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said there was a high risk of closures in the tourism, entertainment, leisure and aviation sectors, as well as in respect of start-ups, and small and informal businesses. Dlamini Zuma said: “Our economy has declined, not only because of the lockdown. We know that our economy was declining and we had been downgraded. There are companies that are thinking of liquidation or retrenching some workers. Unemployment will rise, tax collection will be low, and the vulnerable households have lost income.” She went on to observe that the tourism industry alone could bleed between 555,000 and 600,000 jobs this year, as more than 50,000 tourism businesses could close temporarily or permanently. Dlamini Zuma was briefing the National Council of Provinces in a virtual presentation about the government’s measures to manage the spread of Covid-19 through the implementation of a risk-adjusted strategy.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Siphelele Dludla at Business Report
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