South Africa's labor market faces a deeper challenge than headline unemployment, according to Jennifer Aabachhuizen, head of marketing and talent insights at Mettus, who said employers are increasingly facing a “recruitment problem” as they try to limit financial, operational and reputational risk.
Speaking in a television interview, Aabkhuizen said businesses were no longer simply replacing workers or filling vacancies automatically. Instead, many companies are choosing not to refill roles as employees leave, while placing additional responsibilities on existing employees as they face a weak economic backdrop and rapid technological change.
His comments come as South Africa continues to struggle with high unemployment, especially among young people. Aabkhuizen said youth unemployment is near 60%, underscoring a difficult environment in which millions of people remain unemployed while companies simultaneously become more cautious about who they bring into business.
“The current economic situation is quite dire,” he said, adding that there is pressure on employers to make sure they hire the right person the first time. In his view, poor hiring is no longer seen simply as a recruiting failure. This can cause disruption to operations, impose direct financial costs and cause extensive damage to a company's reputation.
That shift is visible in corporate screening practices. Aabkhuizen said the Mettus data, based on approximately 3.2 million background screening transactions in 2025, points to a more thoughtful approach to verification as employers want more certainty before making hiring decisions.
He said that among the most frequently requested checks, criminal record verification remained the most common. One statistic he described as particularly shocking was that approximately 4% of individuals who underwent criminal record checks either did not know they had a criminal record, were unaware of it, or were not truthful about it.
At the same time, eligibility verification produced the highest level of inconsistencies. Aabkhuizen said that with advances in technology, including artificial intelligence and easy access to document-editing tools, it has become much easier for candidates to obtain or submit false certificates. As a result, he said employers should not take the documents presented at face value.
The rise of AI is becoming a defining feature of the recruiting landscape. Abkhuizen describes it as one of the key themes shaping business in 2026, with technology now influencing both how applicants present themselves and how companies evaluate them. For employers, the promise of screening technology lies in reducing subjectivity, streamlining screening, and identifying risks in the process.
But the use of digital tools is expanding beyond initial recruitment. Abkhuizen said businesses are increasingly re-screening existing employees instead of just limiting themselves to onboarding. He said companies should have clear policies outlining when workers should be screened, whether annually, every two years or by role and industry.
This matters, he said, because employee risk profiles can change over time. An employee who joined an organization 10 or 20 years ago may have faced legal, financial or reputational problems since then that may not have come to light in earlier investigations. In sectors with high compliance demands or sensitive roles, employers are becoming more alert to this possibility.
One of the more controversial areas of screening is social media and digital footprint analysis. Aabkhuizen said the old approach often involved managers manually searching for a candidate online and drawing their own conclusions, a process susceptible to bias. He argued that using third-party screening providers could help standardize the process, provided the candidate's consent is obtained.
According to Aabkhuizen, social media scrutiny should not be interpreted as an attempt to casually monitor private behavior. Instead, they focus on publicly available information and look for signs of more serious concerns, such as discriminatory language, violent behavior, or content that could jeopardize the company's reputation. The concern for employers, he said, is less about where the candidate spent Friday night and more about whether their online conduct might conflict with company policy or harm the brand.
This issue is particularly sensitive for young job seekers who engage in screening activities, especially those aged 18 to 34. Many are entering the formal workforce with limited experience and long digital histories. Asked how companies should balance fairness with risk control, Abkhuizen said the integrity of candidates is important.
He urged applicants not to misrepresent their qualifications or personal history, warning that verification processes are becoming increasingly robust and discrepancies are likely to be uncovered. At the same time, he said, employers are not just chasing spectacular CVs or the highest formal qualifications. Many organizations are willing to hire adaptable candidates with less experience, then train and develop them internally.
This suggests that a more nuanced hiring model is emerging. On one hand, employers are becoming more stringent, incorporating background checks, re-screening and digital checks into their risk controls. On the other hand, they are open to younger or less-qualified workers if those candidates demonstrate integrity, adaptability, and a willingness to learn.
Aabkhuizen also stressed the importance of formal workplace policies governing employee conduct, especially with regard to controversial public views. He said whether a strong political or social stance becomes a disciplinary issue depends on the employer's policies and whether the employee's conduct conflicts with those rules. In some cases, if workers are trained on those policies and still act in a manner that harms the brand, it may be a dismissable offense.
For South African businesses, the message is that hiring is no longer a simple administrative process. It has increasingly become a strategic risk function due to economic stress, scarce opportunities, digital transparency and rising costs of wrong recruitment. For job seekers, especially young ones, the conclusion may be equally clear: ambition matters just as much in a market defined by attentiveness, integrity and verifiable information.