Articles
South Africa’s unemployment crisis: Youth, women, and constitutional rights at stake
The really shocking effect of labour law in SA is that it keeps so very many young people out of work and deeply despondent.
25 March 2024
The really shocking effect of labour law in SA is that it keeps so very many young people out of work and deeply despondent.
To remove potential conflict between Eskom and the entry of independent power producers (IPPs) the transmission grid should be owned and managed by an experienced independent grid management company.
A liberal social policy would recognise that a government cannot make people happy but can create conditions that are favourable for the pursuit of happiness.
By removing the regulations that restrict or prohibit small firms and young people from entering into mutually beneficial conditions of employment, the government would allow the creation of a freely functioning jobs market that would rapidly absorb all unemployed people who wish to work.
Unemployment causes people to lose their dignity and has a negative effect on their lives that is a great burden to them. Denying them the right to bargain freely with a prospective employer takes away the right to end the indignity of unemployment.
Government involvement in the schooling business compromises its neutrality in the field of education: the preservation of its own schools becomes a more important priority than the provision of competitive and steadily improving environments for all its young citizens.
Economic freedom is about creating an environment where individuals have the right to work, produce, consume and invest in their own way. It is a proven path to prosperity, offering individuals the dignity of self-determination and the benefits of a thriving economy.
Onerous minimum conditions of employment, such as the compulsory minimum wage, or other regulatory conditions imposed on employers, all serve to consign women and young people in South Africa, in large numbers, to the ranks of the long-term unemployed.
Government’s responsibility is to create an environment that will increase employment opportunities, reduce unemployment, and reduce poverty.
This article was first published by BizNews on 5 October 2023 The behaviour of some members of Parliament and other office-bearers in government leaves the observer with
