SA unemployment rate up to 33.5%

• Editor's Note: This article has been updated

   

JOHANNESBURG - The Government of National Unity has a huge task ahead.

It will need to address the stubbornly high levels of unemployment.

More people have joined the unemployment queue, according to the latest unemployment numbers released on Tuesday by Statistics South Africa.

STATS SA published its quarterly labour force findings, which show the official unemployment rate has risen by 0.6 percentage points in the second quarter of this year to 33.5%.

According to the results, the most significant decrease in employment was observed in the Western Cape, Mpumalanga, and KwaZulu-Natal.

The new figures are the first to be released since the 29 May elections, which ushered in a new Government of National Unity.