Cape Town – Government is facing growing criticism over its handling of unemployed doctors, with unions warning that the crisis is leaving young medical professionals hopeless and struggling mentally.
According to TimesLIVE, many doctors who have completed community service are now facing long periods without work, some for more than two years, despite severe staff shortages in public healthcare facilities.
The South African Medical Association Trade Union (Samatu), said that the problem has persisted for years, with little urgency shown by authorities to resolve it.
Dr Talente Biyela, chairperson of Samatu’s junior doctors committee, said the situation has become a recurring national crisis.
“This has been ongoing for about three to four years now, so it’s a persistent problem and I think the government has no appetite to put this to rest,” she said.
As stated by the union, data shows that thousands of qualified doctors remain without jobs even after completing mandatory community service.
Dr. Biyela revealed that from a recent cohort whose contracts ended in December 2025, only a small portion had secured employment.
“Of that, only 411 are currently employed, which means 1,480 doctors are still unemployed,” she said.
The human impact of the crisis is also becoming clearer.
A survey of more than 1,200 unemployed doctors found widespread hopelessness, anxiety and loss of purpose among young professionals who had expected stable careers in the public health sector.
One young doctor described the emotional and financial strain of being unemployed after years of training.
“This is the worst time of my life because I have dependents and the next thing you cannot support them because of the issues that we are currently facing. Sometimes it feels like a waste of studies,” he said.
As reported by IOL, union leaders have warned that doctor unemployment is worsening pressure on already strained public healthcare systems.
Samatu general secretary Dr Cedric Sihlangu said the shortage of employed doctors has a ripple effect across the health sector.
“Communities suffer because they have to wait in long queues to get basic healthcare services, the quality of healthcare provided diminishes, and the bill for medical negligence claims rises significantly as fatigued doctors attend to patients,” he said.
Hundreds of qualified doctors remain at home despite healthcare facilities being understaffed, highlighting what labour groups describe as a mismatch between staffing needs and budget allocations.
As stated by Samatu, the crisis is also raising fears that South Africa could lose skilled professionals to overseas markets if employment opportunities are not created urgently.
The union warned that ongoing unemployment is already pushing some doctors to consider leaving the profession or emigrating in search of work.
Government had not yet responded to requests for comment at the time of publication, according to TimesLIVE, leaving unions calling for immediate engagement and long-term planning to prevent future cohorts from facing similar unemployment.
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Compiled by Lisabeal Nqamqhele
