Seeking employment? Check out these five in-demand jobs in South Africa
The August 2024 Pnet Job Market Trends Report highlights the five most sought-after jobs in the country right now.
The recent Pnet Job Market Trends Report has identified the top five jobs currently in high demand in South Africa.
Trends in the job market: Hiring activity
According to the Pnet Job Market Trends Report for August 2024, hiring activity increased by 8% from June 2024 to July 2024. Year-on-year, hiring activity increased by 4%, compared to July of last year.
Year-on-year, hiring activity for remote staff has slowed down. However, there has been an increase of 16% in the recruitment of remote IT professionals over the last three months.
Other industries with more remote vacancies currently include the Business and Management, as well as the Finance industries, as reported by IOL.
Top five most in-demand jobs
Accounting skills remain highly sought after in South Africa. The number one job in top demand is Business Analysis in the Information Technology sector. Below is a look at the current top five in-demand jobs in South Africa:
| Position | Job | Sector / industry |
| 1 | Business Analyst | Information Technology |
| 2 | Nurse / Professional Caregiver | Medical and Health |
| 3 | Executive Manager / Director | Business and Management |
| 4 | Quality Controller | Manufacturing and Assembly |
| 5 | Building Project Manager | Building and Construction |
The Manufacturing and Assembly sector has seen an increase of 6% in hiring activity since July 2023.
Employment Equity trends in the workplace
The aim of Employment Equity (EE) in the workplace is to ensure that the workplace reflects diversity, integrating different cultures and perspectives. About three out of 10 jobs are EE roles in the current job market.
Over the last five years, there has been a slow but growing trend in advertised EE vacancies. In July 2019, about 28% of vacancies were flagged as EE roles. This increased to 31% by July 2024.
The top 5 job sectors with the biggest growth in EE vacancies over the last 5 years are: Medical and Health, Warehousing and Logistics, Sales, Finance, and Information Technology.
Markedly, EE vacancies have almost doubled over the last 5 years in the Medical and Health sector.