i) Job cuts in South Africa have occurred across most sectors leading to a sharp rise in unemployment in the first quarter of 2016, rising to 26.7% from 24.5% in the last quarter of 2015.
ii) Collective industrial relations in the metal and engineering industries have become dysfunctional, with the Bargaining Council for the Metal and Engineering Industry (MEIBC) suffering a financial crisis and the employers and union in the council unable to reach an agreement on a number of issues, resulting in the council being unable to fulfill its dispute resolution functions for some time. This has left the adjudication of many dismissals and other disputes being postponed indefinitely.