The DA is calling on Statistics South Africa to “play its part” and release the results of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) on time, including the Census 2022 which started early in February.
Stats SA had planned to release the 2021 fourth quarter QLFS results by February 21. However, the release of the findings of the survey on time has been delayed.
DA spokesperson on employment and labour, Michael Cardo, blamed the delay on the slow response rate and the need for the agency to conduct quality checks.
“While the DA does not dispute the necessity of quality assurance checks to ensure the validity of the data, almost three weeks have passed with no status update from Stats SA on how this process is unfolding,” said Cardo in a statement.
“The QLFS is an important statistical output that provides insight into South Africa’s labour market by breaking down the employment/unemployment trends across the country’s various economic sectors.
“It provides South Africans with an opportunity to ascertain whether the country is on the right track or not in addressing the scourge of unemployment.”
He added that the 2021 third quarter results of the QLFS, released in November, showed that the unemployment rate escalated to 46.6%, the highest figures since the start of QLFS in 2008.
He shared: “More than anything, the unemployment crisis in South Africa has become a national disaster with far-reaching consequences for the country’s socio-economic stability.
“Unless urgent measures are taken to revive the economy, liberalise the labour market, and foster an environment conducive to job creation, the joblessness crisis will only get worse.
“Stats SA should continue to play its part and ensure that all statistical outputs, including the QLFS, are released on time. It is for this reason that we are looking forward to an urgent update from Stats SA on when the 2021 fourth quarter QLFS statistics will be released.”
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