The top in-demand jobs in South Africa right now
Hiring activity in South Africa may be down, but several jobs are still in high demand.
According to Pnet’s latest Job Market Trends Report, hiring activity in South Africa increased by 1% between May and June 2024.
However, year-on-year demand decreased by 9% compared to June 2023.
The two-year comparison trend shows that recruitment activity has decreased by 6 % compared to June 2022.
However, looking at the data, hiring activity for several jobs still increased, with accounting skills remaining top in demand.
The top in-demand roles and their sectors are:
- Nursing / Professional Care Giving (Medical & Health)
- Vehicle & Mobile Equipment Installation / Repair (Maintenance & Repair)
- Credit Management (Finance)
- Logistics Management (Warehousing & Logistics)
- Financial Analysis (Finance)
Pnet added that sector-specific hiring activity trends can provide valuable insights into the local job market and the South African economy.
Stable and increasing recruitment activity shows confidence in the local economy and business growth.
Pnet thus noted that several sectors saw increased hiring activity over Q2 2024.
Architecture & Engineering showed an uplift of 9% year-on-year in Q2 following a relatively low first quarter.
Following four months of slow recruitment in the Finance sector, it was able to see an increase of 1% in Q2.
Manufacturing & Assembly also saw a 6% increase in Q2.
Pnet’s report also broke down the most in-demand job sectors in three provinces – the Western Cape, Free State and the Northern Cape.
In the Western Cape, the top in-demand jobs were finance, business and management, IT and Admin, Office and Support.
“With the general downturn in demand for IT professionals, the Western Cape experienced a year-on-year decrease in IT vacancies of 42%,” said Pnet.
“However, it is encouraging to see that the Western Cape has seen a noticeable year-on-year increase
in demand for professionals in Finance (+12%), Architecture & Engineering (+18%), and Building & Construction (+10%).”
In the Nothern Cape, Business & Management, Architecture & Engineering and Medical & Health remain in demand.
Despite a 6% year-on-year drop in demand, demand for Business Business & Management professionals in the Northern Cape remains relatively high.
In the Free State, Business & Management, Finance, Admin, Office & Support, and Sales were in high demand.
Year-on-year, the Free State has seen an uptake in demand for Business & Management and Finance professionals.
Gender Changes
With August being Women’s Month, Pnet looked at the biggest increases in female jobseekers applying for ‘male-dominated jobs’ over the last 3 years, with increases seen in:
- Policing Support (+33% increase in female job applications)
- Personal Security (+24% increase in female job applications)
- Disaster / Recovery (+20% increase in female job applications)
- Technical Product Specialist in Telecommunication (+19% increase in female job applications)
- Chef /Cook (+17% increase in female job applications)
In addition, significant increases in female job applications over male job applications since 2021 are seen in the following job categories.
- Equities, Bonds & Derivatives Management (+15% increase in female job applications)
- Commodities / Financial Services Agent (+14% increase in female job applications)
- Veterinarian (+12% increase in female job applications)
- Power & Telecommunication Installation / Repair (+11% increase in female job applications)
- TV / Video / Movie Operator (+11% increase in female job applications)
Looking at current employee records, the gender balance has already shifted for Veterinarians and professionals in Disaster/Recovery, where under half of employed staff are female.
Technical Product Specialists (Telecommunications), on the other hand, still have far to go, with female workers only holding one in four jobs.
“The uptake of women trying to get into unconventional careers is encouraging and will inspire upcoming generations of women to overcome gender barriers.”
“These trends highlight a positive shift towards gender equality in the workplace, reflecting women’s growing confidence and capability in fields once dominated by men.”
Read: What a ‘livable wage’ should be in South Africa – according to researchers
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