Retrenchment statistics between January 2020 to June 2021 reach over 13,000
The Ministry of Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment Creation recorded a total of 13,682 employees retrenched from January 2020 to 30 June 2021.
Of the total number of employees retrenched, 12,238 employees were retrenched by 896 employers from 01 January to 31 December 2020 while 1444 employees were retrenched by 190 employers from January to June 2021, the Ministry of Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment Creation said in recent statistics presented to parliament.
According to the ministry, of the 13,682 retrenchments recorded, 10,773 were mainly due to economic reasons and closure or discontinuation of businesses, while, 2909 retrenchments were due to COVID-19 related reasons.
“No employees were retrenched due to COVID-19 related reasons during the first quarter of 2021/2022 Financial Year (April 2021 – June 2021),” they sai, adding that an Assessment Survey on the Impact of COVID-19 on Namibian Households highlights job losses as a result of the pandemic. The survey was conducted in March 2021 by the Namibia Statistics Agency.
Meanwhile, the ministry said currently there is no evidence to verify whether the unemployment rate is higher until the outcome of the survey becomes available.
