Katlego Sekhu
President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on businesses in the country to remove prior work experience requirements for job positions in a bid to boost the employability of South Africa’s job-seeking youth. The 959 Breakfast team shared their thoughts on this suggestion and shared how they gained their first experience in the job market.
Sol Phenduka shares that he doesn’t have that much experience outside of radio. “I was a student, and it was a call center; apart from that, I’ve just done radio only,” he said, revealing that his entry into radio was through an internship. “YFM has got a Y Academy. It was a six-month internship, and that’s how I got into radio.”
Mpho Maboi also launched her career through an internship. “While studying in my third year, I went and did an internship. By the time I graduated, I already had a job because the company had absorbed us.”
Mpho also highlighted how the state of the economy has badly affected the job market. “Does that not come back to the state of our economy? Are companies making enough money to employ as many people as they can? Because at the moment, we’re seeing so many companies cutting down on employment because business is not that great.
“I think the government also has to work with the private sector to stay. Yes, we have all of these incentives, but how do we put the economy in such a way that people have the buying power and the ability to generate as much revenue as possible so that people can intern?”
Listen to the full discussion on the 959 Breakfast podcast.
