What subjects are keeping South African Human Capital and Human Resource professionals up at night in December 2024?
As a business we look to analyse various data sources and statistics including:
- Our website search traffic
- A review of Google Analytics and Google Trends
- Keyword Ranking tools
- Business media topics
- Tracking of social media platforms including LinkedIn
December is typically a quieter month for digital traffic as organisations prepare for the end-of-year shutdown, a couple of topics remained popular.
Workforce Planning:
The Employment Equity Amendment Act 4 of 2022 will come into effect in South Africa on January 1, 2025 and this will have a major impact on organisations who employ 50 or more people – specifically if they are looking to do business with the State.
In essence, organisations will need to review their employment equity plans and ensure that they meet sector-specific targets.
It is no surprise that we have seen a spike in search traffic related to phrases including:
- “+workforce +planning +advantages”
- “workforce +planning +benefits”
- “advantages of workforce planning”
This mirrors data we recorded in our November analysis.
Unfair dismissal:
While the data pool was lower than normal, we did see a spike in the number of searches relating to unfair dismissals in South Africa.
If you feel you have been unfairly dismissed and would like to discuss your matter with one of our team, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.
Employees, reputational risk and the FlySafair / SABC story:
One of the biggest “HR” stories of December 2024 was undoubtedly the incident involving SABC employee Nobuntu Mkhize aboard a FlySafair flight where she had to be forcibly restrained by cabin crew and passengers.
This incident was widely shared on social media and the SABC is dealing with the HR fallout from this incident.
This incident highlights the importance of developing a robust HR handbook for employees and their line managers to be able to reference when dealing with issues such as these. In partnership with the team from Moodley Attorneys Inc. we have an excellent HR guide which can be customised for your organisation. If you would like to discuss this, please reach out to us for more information.
Return to office and the state of SA workforces
One of the key dynamics which played out in 2024 was the enforcement of “Return to Office” policies which saw a number of major corporates insisting that staff return full-time to their offices and reductions in remote working.
This has created tension between employers and employees who have become accustomed to remote working environments.
An interesting data point we picked up in this Forbes article notes:
“Companies aren’t just suggesting office time — they’re mandating it. The average days required in office have crept up to 2.78 days weekly, marking a steady increase over six months.”
While the “Return to Office” mandates are expected to gather momentum in 2025, one factor to keep your eye on will be the impact on mental health of your staff.
According to a survey by the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) 61% of employed South Africans would quit if they could afford to, citing overwhelming stress, inadequate mental health support, and rigid work arrangements.
Water and your workforce
Just as South Africans were beginning to put loadshedding in the rearview mirror, the next challenge which is coming through is the impact of deteriorating water infrastructure and the impact on staff and businesses.
The tail-end of 2024 saw some major water supply interruptions which resulted in office buildings having to send staff home. In residential areas, extended water cuts saw staff requesting that they can work from home.
This will be an interesting dynamic for HR managers to navigate in 2024, particularly as those most likely to be impacted are the lower and middle-income earners who do not have access to alternative water storage solutions.
Better times ahead
While 2024 was a disruptive year with the elections and the formation of the Government of National Unity, there are some economic data points which suggest that 2025 will be a better year for SA Inc.
KPMG are forecasting GDP growth of 1.5% while the Bureau of Economic Research (BER) – who are historically quite conservative – have forecast this could go as high as 2.2% in 2025.
With over 200 days of no loadshedding, the focus is now shifting toward more efficiency in our port and rail infrastructure. Current inefficiencies are estimated to cost South Africa over R1bn per day and if we can tackle some of these challenges, it will positively impact the economy.
We look forward to working with you in 2025 and sharing more of our insights with you.