Labour Statistics

Unemployment rate is 25.4 percent (Quarterly Multi-topic survey Quarter 4 2022, Statistics Botswana.)
59.3 % of households receive income from wage employment (source: Botswana Core Welfare Indicator Survey 2009/10).
Informal sector businesses in Botswana is estimated at 40,421 (source: 2007 Informal Sector Survey).
Formal Sector Employment Survey estimated average earnings for all employees at P6,803 (source: Quarterly Multi-topic survey Quarter 4, 2022)

 

2021/2022 Minimum Wage Rates (source: Ministry of Employment, Labour Productivity and Skills Development, 2021):

 

Trade /industry

BASIC MINIMUM WAGE

1.

Building, Construction, Exploration and Quarry Industries

 P7.34 per hour

2

Wholesale Distributive Trade

 P7.34 per hour

3

Manufacturing, Service and Repair Trades

 P7.34 per hour

4.

Hotel, Catering and Entertainment Trades

 P7.34 per hour

5

Garage, Motor Trade and Road Transport

 P7.34 per hour

6.

Retail Distributive Trade

 P6.31 per hour

7.

Watchmen employed in the above Industries and Trades or any sector thereof

P7.34 per hour

8.

Security Guards employed by Security Companies

 P7.34 per hour

9.

Domestic Service Sector

 P1084.00 per month

10.

Agricultural Sector

P1084.00 per month

 

 

Unemployment Rate Trends

As it can be seen from figure 2 below, unemployment rate trends from 2001 to 2015/6 estimated from censuses and surveys show that the highest unemployment rates were estimated from the Botswana Aids Impact Surveys (BAIS III and II) of 2008 and 2004, at 26.2 and 24.6 percent, respectively. Although there is an observable downward trend in the unemployment rate in the current period, the unemployment rate is still high for a middle income country.