Finding a job takes more than submitting an application. It takes time, money, persistence and, often, a level of resilience that goes unseen.

JOBJACK’s 2026 Job Seeker Report, The Cost of Trying, explores what the journey to employment looks like for South Africa’s store-level job seekers. Following a group of 867,706 registered job seeker profiles and more than 5,000 survey responses, the report looks beyond application numbers to understand the people behind them.

The reality behind the numbers

Finding work comes at a cost, but so does keeping your job

Job seekers spend an estimated average of R490 a month looking for work. For many, transport is a significant barrier: 36.4% of respondents who missed an interview said they simply didn’t have the money to get there.

73.8% of employed respondents earn no more than R6,500 a month; 54.6% of them spend between R800 and R2,001+ a month on transport, which means that getting to work can cost anywhere from about 12% to almost a third of a salary or more.

Experience can determine who gets an opportunity

Candidates with previous work experience were 11 times more likely to be appointed than those without it.

This creates a difficult barrier for people trying to enter the workforce: experience can make someone more likely to get a job, but gaining that experience often requires getting a job in the first place. For employers, it raises an important question about how potential is recognised when previous experience becomes such a significant factor in hiring.

People want more than a payslip

Despite the challenges, job seekers are looking beyond immediate employment.

Among unemployed respondents, 82.4% said growth opportunities were important when deciding whether to accept a job. People aren't simply looking for work; they're looking for opportunities to build their futures.

When asked to describe how job seeking feels, the most common response was hopeful.

Behind the numbers are people who want the chance to contribute, develop their skills and move forward.

What does this mean for employers?

These findings challenge us to look beyond applications, appointments and time-to-hire.

Behind every application is a person navigating real barriers, with ambitions that extend beyond getting their first payslip.

For employers, understanding these realities is an important step towards building a workforce that works for both the business and the people who run it.

We believe that better hiring starts with understanding people: what they bring to a role, what helps them succeed and what stands in their way.

Explore the findings, understand the realities of the job seeking journey and discover what they mean for the future of store-level employment in South Africa. Read the full report →