Work-Seeking Conditionality: A Flawed Approach to Social Grants

This factsheet by the Institute for Economic Justice argues against replacing South Africa's R370 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant with a work-seekers' grant, asserting that work-seeking conditionalities are costly, counter-productive, and unjust.

• The proposal to attach work-seeking conditionalities to social grants is criticized for ignoring the structural drivers of unemployment in South Africa, where a lack of available jobs exists even for qualified workers, thereby unfairly blaming individuals for systemic economic failures.
• International evidence suggests that work-seeking conditionality often fails to improve employment outcomes and is associated with high administrative costs and negative effects such as depressing wages and disadvantaging workers.
• Work-seeking conditionality is described as unfair and stigmatising because social assistance is a constitutional right in South Africa; such conditions exclude needy individuals and exacerbate inequalities, especially for caregivers and women.
• The document advocates for unconditional basic income as a superior alternative to punitive conditions to promote economic inclusion, autonomy, and dignity while addressing poverty and inequality.

APA

iej_admin (2024). Work-Seeking Conditionality: A Flawed Approach to Social Grants. Institute for Economic Justice. https://iej.org.za/resource/factsheet/work-seeking-conditionality-is-just-bad-policy-ubig-factsheet/

Chicago

iej_admin. Work-Seeking Conditionality: A Flawed Approach to Social Grants. Institute for Economic Justice, 2024. https://iej.org.za/resource/factsheet/work-seeking-conditionality-is-just-bad-policy-ubig-factsheet/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=iej_admin |title=Work-Seeking Conditionality: A Flawed Approach to Social Grants |publisher=Institute for Economic Justice |date=24 October 2024 |url=https://iej.org.za/resource/factsheet/work-seeking-conditionality-is-just-bad-policy-ubig-factsheet/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{iejadmin2024workseeking, author = {iej\_admin}, title = {{Work-Seeking Conditionality: A Flawed Approach to Social Grants}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2024}, month = oct, url = {https://iej.org.za/resource/factsheet/work-seeking-conditionality-is-just-bad-policy-ubig-factsheet/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }