South Africa has an acute skills shortage in major sectors such as IT, Finance and Engineering. Coupled with a high rate of unemployment, this divides our workforce into three categories: employed, unemployed and unemployable.

Employed is the honorable and sought-after status. However, many people in the current economy find themselves in the less favourable ensuing categories. At first glance, it is easy to mistake one word for the other. Most, if not all, agree that while being "unemployed" is hardly bearable, one never wants to be perceived as "unemployable". Dictionary.com defines an "unemployed" person as one "without a paid job but available to work". The same site defines an "unemployable" person as someone who is "not able to get paid employment because of a lack of skills or qualifications."

If you search online job portals, you will notice that there are hundreds of companies waiting for the right employees to fill their numerous positions e.g. C# Developers, Java Developers, and SAP Integration Specialists. Yet the rates of unemployment, especially those of graduates, is still terrifyingly high: This begs the question: are South Africans without work unemployed or just plain unemployable? If the latter, how do we get them back to the former?

Here's our advice if you fall into the "unemployed" category:As an initial act, stop listening to the negative press. It will only make you feel hopeless.Be sure that your CV is the best that it can possibly be. If you have any doubts, ask a career professional or one of our specialist recruiters for their input.Practice your interview skills and, if possible, engage a specialist recruiter to evaluate your soft skills rather than just your technical qualifications. Working with a career specialist will eliminate all negative thoughts and build your self-confidence.Keep abreast of market trends in your preferred industry. For example, if you are in IT you should be aware of the developments that are happening in mobile computing, virtualisation, augmented reality and the latest versions of .NET Framework and Smart devices.

Our specialist recruiters are trained to know the current trends in the market and are the best professionals to advise you which career path you should take. Contact them today to schedule an appointment.

Are you looking for an IT job, Finance job, Engineering job, or a Contracting assignment? Contact Network Recruitment, the center of recruitment excellence.