THE economy has lost almost 200000 formal sector jobs as the recession has taken hold over the past year, with the state proving to be the only source of employment growth while jobs have been shed by private firms in almost all sectors.

But the latest figures from Statistics SA show that job shedding slowed down in the second quarter of this year, with 67000 jobs lost compared to 186000 in the first quarter. Economists predict, however, that even when the economy starts to recover, it will be a while before employment starts growing again.

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