More than 6 million South Africans are unemployed and unionised members are becoming more cautious about their union engagement. Union membership is on the decline, and this trend has been exacerbated by the decline in the labour market, which according to Stats SA lost 191,000 jobs since the global recession hit in 2007.

The number of registered unions has decreased by 39 per cent from 485 in 2001 to 198 in 2009 and union membership decreased from 35.2 per cent of total employees in 2001 to 24.6 per cent in 2009. The largest membership decline occurred in the finance and utilities sectors.

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