Werksgeleenthede Versus Toelaes

The fact sheet challenges the narrative that social grants discourage work or hinder economic growth in South Africa. It argues that income support actually increases autonomy, enables job seeking by reducing poverty, and stimulates local economies through a multiplier effect. The document advocates for a Guaranteed Universal Basic Income (UBIG) to address structural poverty, support unpaid care work—primarily performed by women—and provide workers with the leverage to refuse exploitative employment.

• Cash transfers do not lead to labor market withdrawal or a 'dependency syndrome'; instead, evidence suggests that recipients in South Africa remain highly motivated to work for reasons beyond survival, such as personal fulfillment and community contribution.
• Income support can increase labor market participation by reducing the financial barriers to seeking employment. In 2019, the average monthly cost of searching for work in South Africa was R938, which is above the food poverty line.
• Cash transfers stimulate local economic growth and human capital development. Examples include a 50% increase in production value in Zambia, an 8% increase in agricultural input use in Lesotho, and a 51 percentage point increase in productive asset ownership in Kenya.
• There is no evidence that social grants are wasted on 'temptation goods' like alcohol and tobacco. A 2021 study showed that 93.3% of SRD-R350 grant recipients in South Africa spent the largest portion of their grant on food, followed by electricity at 31.8%.
• A universal basic income provides a safety net or 'escape option' that allows workers to reject exploitative work and improves their bargaining power, which can lead to better wages and conditions if the grant is set above the poverty line and supported by labor protections.
• Relying solely on employment to solve poverty disadvantages women, as significant amounts of valuable but unpaid care work—such as childcare and domestic work—are performed by women and not recognized as 'work'.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2023). Werksgeleenthede Versus Toelaes. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IEJ-UBIG-3-factsheet-Afrikaans.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. Werksgeleenthede Versus Toelaes. 2023. https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IEJ-UBIG-3-factsheet-Afrikaans.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=Werksgeleenthede Versus Toelaes |date=November 2023 |url=https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IEJ-UBIG-3-factsheet-Afrikaans.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforeconomicjustice2023werksgeleenthede, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{Werksgeleenthede Versus Toelaes}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2023}, month = nov, url = {https://iej.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IEJ-UBIG-3-factsheet-Afrikaans.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }