The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) in South Africa registered 193,069 referrals during the 2024/25 financial year. This represents a 4,500 increase from the previous period. Unfair dismissals made up 51% of all referrals, highlighting the prevalence of employment disputes in the country. The CCMA is a statutory body that assists aggrieved employees and resolves labour disputes.
The business services sector accounted for 11% of referrals, while the building sector accounted for 7%, domestic sector for 5%, and agriculture for 4%. The private security and retail sectors each accounted for 13% of referrals. These statistics indicate that various sectors of the economy are experiencing labour disputes. The CCMA's caseload reflects the challenges faced by employees and employers in South Africa.
A total of 575 people, mostly security guards, were retrenched during the period under review, while 329 jobs were saved in the sector. South Africa's private security industry employs more than 580,000 personnel, far exceeding the 180,000 employed by the police. However, the industry faces criticism for deducting money from workers' wages for provident funds, medical aid, and the Unemployment Insurance Fund but failing to pay these funds over to the respective accounts.
According to the CCMA, referrals have totalled 4.1 million since its establishment in 1996. Employers have been retrenching workers to keep their businesses afloat amid the low-growth economy and other socioeconomic pressures. This has contributed to the country's persistently high unemployment rate of 33.6%. The number of unemployed people rose by 345,000 in the second quarter of 2026 to 8.5 million.
From 2020/21 to 2024/25, there were 32,312 retrenchments, while jobs saved accounted for 30,581. The mining sector led with the highest number of jobs saved at 12,270, followed by the metal industry (4,275), manufacturing (1,699), food/beverages sector (1,349), retail (2,795), transport (2,370), agriculture/farming (560), media (206), and banking/finance (24). There were 499 section 189A referrals dealing with retrenchments during 2024/25.
Michael Bagraim, a labour analyst and DA spokesperson on employment and labour, attributed the high unfair dismissal referral rate to several factors. Companies want to shrink their workforce and avoid the stringent retrenchment exercise. As a result, people are looking for excuses to dismiss employees, and proper procedures are not being followed. Bagraim also noted that trade unions are shrinking, advising their members to challenge their dismissals.
Industrial psychologist Ashleigh Nel argues that some employment endings were set in motion months earlier, at the point of hire. A misfit occurs when a person is put into a role they were never suited for, leading to absenteeism, disciplinary hearings, retraining, and another vacancy to fill. Nel emphasizes the importance of job fit, stating that it is much better than picking someone at random, but still not a guarantee.
Key points
- Unfair dismissals accounted for 51% of all CCMA referrals in 2024/25.
- The CCMA received 193,069 referrals during the 2024/25 financial year.
- South Africa's private security industry employs more than 580,000 personnel.
