LONDON (Reuters) &#8211; The number of people in work in Britain fell by the most since 2009 in the three months through June as the coronavirus crisis took a heavy toll on the labour market, even with the government’s huge jobs protection scheme still in place.



Led by a record plunge in self-employed workers, there were 220,000 less people employed in the second quarter, the Office for National Statistics said.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="275" height="183" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/london.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-376521"/></figure>



Separate tax data for July showed that the number of staff on company payrolls had fallen by 730,000 since March, sounding the alarm about a potentially much bigger rise in joblessness.



Mounting job losses are expected as Britain winds down its job retention scheme which protects employees. It is due to close at the end of October.



“The cracks evident in the latest batch of labour market data are likely to soon turn into a chasm,” said Ruth Gregory, senior economist at Capital Economics.



British finance minister Rishi Sunak said the figures showed the government’s support programmes were working but job losses were inevitable.



“I’ve always been clear that we can’t protect every job, but &#8230; we have a clear plan to protect, support and create jobs to ensure that nobody is left without hope,” he said.



The unemployment rate unexpectedly held at 3.9% but that reflected an increase in people who had given up looking for work and who were therefore not considered to be unemployed, and people who said they were in work but were getting no pay.



Economists polled by Reuters had expected the unemployment rate to rise to 4.2%. Last week the Bank of England forecast the jobless rate would hit 7.5% at the end of this year.



“Government needs to step in and help those who are likely to lose their job retrain for new openings in different sectors,” KPMG economist Yael Selfin said.



The number of self-employed people fell by a record amount in the three months to June, led by older workers, while the number of employees rose &#8211; something the ONS said was partly accounted for by workers reclassifying themselves as employed.



The number of people claiming universal credit &#8211; a benefit for the unemployed and those on low pay &#8211; rose to 2.689 million in July, leaping by 117% from March.



Pay fell by the most in more than 10 years in the April-June period, down 1.2%, reflecting how workers on the job retention scheme receive 80% of their pay. Excluding bonuses, pay fell for the first time since records began in 2001.



However, there was a small increase in job vacancies in the three months to July.



“The increase was driven by small businesses (less than 50 employees), some of which reported taking on staff to meet coronavirus (COVID-19) guidelines,” the ONS said.

london

UK suffers biggest job losses since 2009 as COVID hits

WASHINGTON (Reuters) &#8211; U.S. employers announced another 262,649 job cuts in July as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to weigh on demand, the latest indication that the labor market recovery is losing steam.



The layoffs reported by global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray &amp; Christmas on Thursday were up 54% from June.



The job cuts, the third-largest monthly total since the coronavirus pandemic began, followed data this week showing a big step-down in private payrolls in July and further contraction in employment at manufacturing and services industries.



Hiring announcements totaled 246,507 in July, almost matching layoffs, Challenger, Gray reported.



“The downturn is far from over, especially as COVID cases rise around the country,” said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president at Challenger, Gray. “Consumers are buying fewer goods and services, businesses are closing, and bankruptcies are rising.”



July’s job cuts brought the total so far this year to 1.848 million, up 212% from the same period in 2019. The year-to-date layoffs are just 109,180 away from the record 1.957 million job cuts announced in 2001.



The weak labor market data raises the risk of a sharper slowdown in job growth in July. The Labor Department will publish its closely watched, and broader, monthly employment report on Friday. According to a Reuters survey of economists, nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 1.6 million in July, down from the record 4.8 million jobs created in June.



According to Challenger, Gray &amp; Christmas, COVID-19 was cited as the reason for 63,517 job cuts in July. The respiratory illness has been blamed for 1.075 million layoffs so far this year. The balance of job cuts in July were attributed to market conditions, a downturn in demand and bankruptcies.



Several retailers including J.C. Penney and Lord &amp; Taylor have filed for bankruptcy since March. Job cuts remained concentrated at bars, restaurants, hotels and amusement parks. The automotive sector cut 83,853 jobs. Hiring announcements totaled 246,507 in July, almost matching layoffs.



“It is clear that many job losses are now permanent, and it will be challenging for many workers to find new jobs and feel safe taking jobs that are public-facing,” said Challenger.

US COVID-19

Job cuts announced by U.S. companies jump 54% in July: report

South Africa&#8217;s Moody&#8217;s reprieve is over. The rating agency, the last to rate the country investment grade, has cut South Africa’s sovereign credit rating to junk <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/news/2020/03/27/moodys-to-cut-south-africas-sovereign-credit-rating-to-junk-economists/">in line with economists&#8217; forecast</a>. This comes as the country&#8217;s recession deepened by the impact of COVID-19 frustrates its economic reform efforts and stifles its plans to reduce government debt.



The action will result in South Africa&#8217;s expulsion from the World Government Bond Index (WGBI), as a consequence those funds tracking this index as a benchmark will become forced sellers.



<a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/insights/sa-downgrade/2017/11/24/sa-downgrade-2/">Analysts have warned </a>that the magnitude of this forced selling could be as high as $8 billion (R141 billion at R17.64 exchange rate).&nbsp; 



Moody&#8217;s issued the following statement explaining its reasons: 



Moody&#8217;s Investors Service, (&#8220;Moody&#8217;s&#8221;) has today downgraded the Government of South Africa&#8217;s long-term foreign-currency and local-currency issuer ratings to Ba1 from Baa3. The outlook remains negative. A Ba1 rating is judged to have speculative elements and a significant credit risk. 



READ: <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/news/financial/2020/03/28/governments-response-to-moodys-downgrade-of-sa-to-junk-status/">SA government&#8217;s response to Moody&#8217;s downgrade </a>



The key driver behind the rating downgrade to Ba1 is the continuing deterioration in fiscal strength and structurally very weak growth, which Moody&#8217;s does not expect current policy settings to address effectively.



Both outcomes speak to weaker economic and fiscal policy effectiveness than Moody&#8217;s previously assumed.



<div class="wp-block-group"><div class="wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow">
<figure class="wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-cnbc-africa"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.cnbcafrica.com/videos/2019/02/20/budget2019-what-a-moodys-downgrade-will-mean-for-sa/
</div></figure>
</div></div>



The negative outlook reflects the risk that economic growth will prove even weaker and the debt burden will rise even faster and further than currently expected, weakening debt affordability and potentially, access to funding.



Moody&#8217;s also downgraded South Africa&#8217;s long-term foreign-currency and local-currency senior unsecured debt ratings to Ba1 from Baa3, its foreign-currency senior unsecured MTN and senior unsecured Shelf ratings to (P)Ba1 from (P)Baa3, as well as its foreign-currency other short-term rating to (P)NP from (P)P-3.



In a related action, Moody&#8217;s downgraded ZAR Sovereign Capital Fund Propriety Limited&#8217;s foreign currency, backed senior unsecured debt rating to Ba1 from Baa3 and maintained its negative outlook. ZAR Sovereign 



Capital Fund Propriety Limited is a special purpose vehicle whose debt issuance is ultimately the obligation of the South African government.



All South Africa&#8217;s long-term country risk ceilings were revised down by one notch. Its long-term local-currency bond and bank deposits ceilings were revised down to A3 from A2, and the long-term foreign-currency bond ceilings to Baa1 from A3. The short-term bond foreign-currency ceiling remained unchanged at Prime-2. Moody&#8217;s also lowered the long-term foreign-currency bank deposits ceilings to Ba1 from Baa3 and the short-term foreign-currency bank deposits ceiling to Not Prime(NP) from Prime-3.



RATINGS RATIONALE



RATIONALE FOR THE RATING DOWNGRADE TO Ba1



STRUCTURALLY VERY WEAK GROWTH AND CONSTRAINED CAPACITY TO STIMULATE THE



ECONOMY



Unreliable electricity supply, persistent weak business confidence and investment as well as long-standing structural labour market rigidities continue to constrain South Africa&#8217;s economic growth. As a result, South Africa is entering a period of much lower global growth in an economically vulnerable position. The government&#8217;s own capacity to limit the economic deterioration, in the current shock and more durably is constrained. Fiscal space is very limited and looser monetary policy will not address underlying structural problems. The unprecedented deterioration in the global economic outlook caused by the rapid spread of the coronavirus outbreak will exacerbate the South Africa&#8217;s economic and fiscal challenges and will complicate the emergence of effective policy responses.



Progress on structural economic reforms has been very limited. Some initiatives to improve competition and encourage job creation have progressed, but none that constitute a step-change for the economy. 



Structural issues such as labour market rigidities and uncertainty over property rights generated by the planned land reform remain unaddressed. 



Moreover, a strategy to stabilize electricity production has been slow to emerge and has yet to prove its effectiveness. Moody&#8217;s assumes that while power supply will become more reliable, the restoration of full capacity will take some years to complete. As a result, after the immediate sharp downturn, growth will remain very low in the following years.



INEXORABLE RISE IN GOVERNMENT DEBT OVER THE MEDIUM TERM



South Africa&#8217;s debt burden will rise over the next five years under any plausible economic and fiscal scenario.



Debt-to-GDP increased by 10 percentage points (ppts) over 2014-18 and will rise by a further 22 ppts over 2019-23 under Moody&#8217;s baseline projections. Over that timeframe, Moody&#8217;s expects primary deficits to persist. The fiscal deficit will widen in fiscal 2020 to around 8.5% of 



GDP, as revenue declines this year, only narrowing very gradually thereafter. Fiscal strains from interest payments and support to state-owned enterprises will continue.



In this context, and consistent with the recently announced budget, any fiscal consolidation will rest primarily on containing the large and growing public sector wage bill. The government aims to achieve ZAR160 billion (3% of GDP) in savings over the next three fiscal years by keeping wage growth below inflation. That would mark a material departure from current agreements and past outcomes, and as such is likely to prove challenging to implement. Moody&#8217;s expects expenditure on wages to exceed budget at least in 2020.



Interest rates are likely to rise above the levels assumed in the budget and nominal growth will be weaker. Moody&#8217;s estimates that the debt burden will reach 91% of GDP by fiscal 2023, inclusive of the guarantees to state-owned enterprises from 69% at end of fiscal 2019. Even if the government&#8217;s plans to restrain wage growth were fully implemented, debt-to-GDP would still continue to rise significantly. Similarly, even under a scenario of more effective improvement in tax compliance and falling interest rates from fiscal 2021, government debt would still rise to around 87% by 2023.



RATIONALE FOR THE NEGATIVE OUTLOOK



The negative outlook reflects downside risks around economic growth and fiscal metrics, that could lead to an even more rapid and sizeable increase in the debt burden, further lowering debt affordability and potentially weakening South Africa&#8217;s access to funding.



Downside risks to growth are both immediate and longer term, relating to heightened uncertainty about the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic and to the possibility that negative economic sentiment becomes further entrenched as policymakers and stakeholders continue to struggle to reach consensus on the structural reforms that would sustainably stimulate growth and employment. With unemployment at already very high levels (29%), even weaker growth would have significantly negative social implications.



Should these downside risks materialise, South Africa&#8217;s government debt would stabilise later and at a higher level than currently expected by Moody&#8217;s. A steeper increase in debt would weaken debt affordability, potentially challenging the government&#8217;s currently strong access to funding at manageable costs, particularly during periods of acute risk aversion by global investors such as at present. Although South Africa&#8217;s exposure to global financing conditions is mitigated by its reliance on local currency debt, its weak economic and fiscal fundamentals could exacerbate adverse capital flows.



ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, GOVERNANCE CONSIDERATIONS



Environmental risk influences Moody&#8217;s assessment of South Africa&#8217;s economic resilience. Due to its geographical location, South Africa is subject to frequent climate change-related shocks such as droughts which undermine the agricultural sector&#8217;s performance and weigh on growth. Set against that, the country&#8217;s economic diversification and sophisticated agricultural techniques mitigate the impact of environmental considerations on South Africa&#8217;s credit profile.



Social considerations are material for South Africa&#8217;s credit profile and their implications for the economy and public finances are a driver of the rating downgrade. Deep socio-economic inequalities complicate the implementation of reforms that would otherwise unlock the economy&#8217;s significant potential. They also contribute to tensions and resistance from key stakeholders that ultimately fuel political risk.



Governance considerations are material to South Africa&#8217;s credit profile. South Africa&#8217;s ranking under the Worldwide Governance Indicators is stronger than Ba1-rated sovereigns, and the strength of key institutions, 



in particular the South African Reserve Bank and the Treasury, support the rating. However, the broader erosion in institutional strength induced by the wide-spread corruption of the Zuma administration is an important factor behind the erosion in South Africa&#8217;s credit profile in recent years. Moreover, the legacy that era has bequeathed of poor governance of state-owned enterprisess remains a key drain on fiscal resources.



WHAT COULD CHANGE THE RATING UP



Given the negative outlook a rating upgrade is unlikely
in the near future.



Moody&#8217;s would likely change the rating outlook to stable if the government&#8217;s medium-term fiscal consolidation were to proceed broadly in line with the rating agency&#8217;s central expectations, with prospects of a slow but durable pick-up in growth and financing risks remaining low. In this scenario, Moody&#8217;s would likely see a gradual reduction in South Africa&#8217;s primary deficit in the next few years, with increasing assurance that government debt will stabilize comfortably below 90% of GDP.



WHAT COULD CHANGE THE RATING DOWN



South Africa&#8217;s ratings would likely be downgraded if Moody&#8217;s were to conclude that any combination of very weak growth, failure to reduce the primary deficit, and rising financing costs was likely to cause the debt burden to rise to even higher levels than currently projected with even greater uncertainty regarding its eventual stabilisation, in turn threatening South Africa&#8217;s access to funding at manageable costs. Such an outcome would speak to weaker institutional policymaking capacity and, over time, a diminution of economic and fiscal strength consistent with lower rating levels.



Important indicators in this regard include the government&#8217;s ability over the next year or so to contain the impact of global recession on the South African economy and to promote recovery thereafter; to agree and begin to implement the structural reforms that would strengthen the economy. The implementation of the framework for a reliable supply of power to the economy and fiscal reforms to contain expenditure and enhance revenues are important milestones.

Moody’s downgrades SA to junk

<div style="max-width: 700px;">
 <video-js
 data-account="1571595826001"
 data-player="default"
 data-video-id="6134548081001"
 data-embed="default"
 controls=""
 data-application-id=""
 class="vjs-fluid"></video-js>
</div>
<script src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.min.js">
</script> 
Loss of jobs and wealth inequality due to automation are issues of concern to some while on the other hand, new industries and jobs in the technology sector outweigh the economic effects of workers being displaced by automation according to World Bank. James Kanyangi, Group Head of Robotic Process Automation at Technobrain joins CNBC Africa for more.

How Africa can prepare for the disruptive impact of automation

How Africa can prepare for the disruptive impact of automation, robotics on the future of work

<div style="max-width: 700px;">
 <video-js
 data-account="1571595826001"
 data-player="default"
 data-video-id="6131271820001"
 data-embed="default"
 controls=""
 data-application-id=""
 class="vjs-fluid"></video-js>
</div>
<script
 src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.min.js">
</script> 
Rwanda Cycling Federation (Ferwacy) partnered with GIZ, a German development agency, to create ‘Ride Rwanda’, a cycling event to promote Rwandan inbound tourism, especially to the Kivu-Belt Region. CNBC Africa spoke with Rene Nkurunziza, Ferwacy’s Ride Rwanda Coordinator to look at the jobs and business opportunity creation in Kivu Belt through sports tourism development.

How cycling could help boost tourism numbers in Rwanda’s Kivu-Belt

By <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/jennifer-liu/">Jennifer Liu</a> 



The potential to work for a company from anywhere in the world has never been greater.



According to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/trends-and-forecasting/research-and-surveys/Documents/SHRM%20Employee%20Benefits%202019%20Executive%20Summary.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report from the Society for Human Resources Management</a>, 69% of organizations allowed employees to work from home at least some of the time in 2019 — more than&nbsp;<a href="https://www.shrm.org/about-shrm/press-room/press-releases/pages/telecommuting-up-over-past-20-years.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">three times</a>&nbsp;the share of companies who allowed telecommuting 20 years ago.



Many remote workers are highly compensated (nearly a quarter earn&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/17/owl-labs-state-of-remote-work-report-24-percent-of-remote-workers-earn-100k.html">$100,000 or more)</a>&nbsp;and they tend to be&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/31/cebr-study-finds-remote-workers-get-105-hours-more-leisure-time-a-year.html">happier in their jobs</a>. A combination of factors, including improved worker satisfaction, greater productivity and more efficient use of company resources, are some reasons why the ability to work from just about anywhere is one of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/18/buzzworthy-company-benefits-that-will-dominate-workplaces-in-2020.html">biggest workplace trends</a>&nbsp;to watch for in 2020 and beyond.



To determine which employers are leading the charge in this space, FlexJobs identified the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/100-top-companies-with-remote-jobs-2020/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">best companies to work for</a>&nbsp;to land a work-from-home job today.



The job listing site analyzed its database of over 54,000 companies and identified the ones that posted the highest number of remote jobs in 2019, suggesting they’ll continue to hire a large amount of remote workers in the new year. Jobs on the site can be advertised as being a either part-time or full-time remote work arrangement.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The companies that are hiring for remote workers, from tech to education</h2>



The No. 1 company hiring for remote workers is Appen, an Australian technology company that helps organizations develop machine learning and artificial intelligence products. While four of the top 20 companies on the list are international (China, India and Sweden are represented), the majority of companies are based in the U.S. and are largely concentrated in areas around Arizona (such as No. 4 Liveops) and California (such as No. 10 Williams-Sonoma).



Many roles within health care, computer and IT organizations can be done remotely, and these fields are well represented among the top companies filling remote jobs. These are also some of the largest and fastest-growing industries in the U.S., where&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/07/the-industries-with-the-highest-share-of-open-jobs-how-much-they-pay.html">demand</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/06/how-switching-careers-to-tech-could-solve-the-us-talent-shortage.html">pay</a>&nbsp;are strong, especially in today’s tight labor market.



Education companies also grew their remote workforce in the past year: Two e-learning companies, VIPKid and EF Education First, cracked the top 10.



“The most notable change we’ve seen over the past year is not so much the growth in the sheer volume of remote job listings, but the growth in the variety of remote job titles these companies are seeking to hire,” said Sara Sutton, founder and CEO of FlexJobs, in a statement to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/make-it/">CNBC Make It</a>. “Companies are expanding the range of professional positions they’re allowing to work from home.”



According to FlexJobs,<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/22/flexjobs-the-most-popular-remote-work-opportunities.html"> the most common job titles</a> for remote work are accountant, customer service representative, project manager, nurse and writer.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">More companies are able to hire internationally</h2>



Global companies and those headquartered in high cost-of-living areas may be able to expand their talent pool by considering applicants who live in other parts of the country, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/03/the-top-10-cities-in-the-world-for-expats-to-live-and-work-abroad.html">even the world</a>.



“The cost of living in many major U.S. cities is high and can be prohibitive,” Michelle Armer, chief people officer at job site CareerBuilder, told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/make-it/">CNBC Make It</a>. “Broadly, we’re seeing people&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/29/millennials-are-fleeing-big-cities-for-the-suburbs.html">move away from urban hubs</a>&nbsp;in favor of less popular areas where they can get more space for less.”



People who do their jobs from home, freelance or travel for work are increasingly leaving cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco and taking their families — and jobs — to places including Denver and Boise, Idaho,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/workers-are-fleeing-big-cities-for-small-onesand-taking-their-jobs-with-them-11567848600" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according to The Wall Street Journal</a>.



Here are the top 20 companies, hiring hundreds of remote workers each.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">1. Appen</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia



Industry:&nbsp;Technology (machine learning and artificial intelligence)



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-appen" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;voice coach, linguist, web search evaluator, transcriber



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">2. Lionbridge</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Waltham, Massachusetts



Industry:&nbsp;Software and business (language translation)



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-lionbridge" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;creative designer, social media assessor, project manager, scheduling assistant



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">3. VIPKid</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Beijing, China



Industry:&nbsp;Education



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-vipkid" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;online English as a second language teacher



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">4. Liveops</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Scottsdale, Arizona



Industry:&nbsp;Customer service



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-liveops" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;customer service representative, licensed insurance agent, health care resource specialist



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">5. Working Solutions</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Dallas, Texas



Industry:&nbsp;Customer service



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-working_solutions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;sales development representative, travel reservation specialist, corporate travel agent



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">6. Kelly Services</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Troy, Michigan



Industry:&nbsp;Staffing



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-kelly_services" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;data entry operator, administrative assistant, software tester, data analyst



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">7. EF Education First</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Cambridge, Massachusetts



Industry:&nbsp;Education



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-ef_-_education_first" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;language teacher, copywriter, content writer, college counselor, IT coordinator



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">8. SYKES</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Tampa, Florida



Industry:&nbsp;Customer service



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-sykes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;customer support agent, executive assistant, senior director of client management



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">9. Concentrix</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Fremont, California



Industry:&nbsp;Business services



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-concentrix" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;sales and service representative



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">10. Williams-Sonoma</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;San Francisco, California



Industry:&nbsp;Retail



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-williams-sonoma" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;customer service agent, technical designer, copy manager



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">11. UnitedHealth Group</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Minneapolis, Minnesota



Industry:&nbsp;Health care



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-unitedhealth_group" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;product director, medical director, health and wellness coach, call center nurse



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">12. LanguageLine Solutions</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Monterey, California



Industry:&nbsp;Translation



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-languageline_solutions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;interpreter, software engineer



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">13. TTEC</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Englewood, Colorado



Industry:&nbsp;Business operations



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-ttec" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;Salesforce developer, software engineer, consultant, web developer



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">14. TranscribeMe</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;San Francisco, California



Industry:&nbsp;Information technology, translation



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-transcribeme" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;transcriptionist



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">15. Humana</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Louisville, Kentucky



Industry:&nbsp;Health care



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-humana" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;sales manager, medical director, business and technology lead, sales executive



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">16. Cactus Communications</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Mumbai, Maharashtra, India



Industry:&nbsp;Communications



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-cactus_communications" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;editor, medical writer, academic research evaluation



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">17. Transcom</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Stockholm, Uppland, Sweden



Industry:&nbsp;Customer service



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-transcom" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;technical support representative, payroll administrator, customer service agent



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">18. BroadPath Healthcare Solutions</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Tuscon, Arizona



Industry:&nbsp;Health care



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-broadpath_healthcare_solutions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;director of service operations, provider service representative, insurance claims processor, data specialist



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">19. Dell</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Round Rock, Texas



Industry:&nbsp;Computer technology



<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-dell" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote jobs</a>:&nbsp;program manager, account executive, consultant, sales executive



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">20. Aetna</h2>



Headquarters:&nbsp;Hartford, Connecticut



Industry:&nbsp;Health care



<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.flexjobs.com/jobs/telecommuting-jobs-at-aetna" target="_blank">Remote jobs</a>: outreach coordinator, content quality reviewer, network relations manager, health coach



This article was first published on CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/10/top-20-companies-hiring-remote-workers-and-best-remote-roles.html?forYou=true">https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/10/top-20-companies-hiring-remote-workers-and-best-remote-roles.html?forYou=true</a> and is republished with its permission.

These 20 companies around the world are on a hiring spree for work-from-home jobs

NAIROBI (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya’s earnings from tourism rose 3.9% last year to 163.56 billion shillings ($1.61 billion), thanks to a slight increase in the number of visitors, its tourism minister said on Friday.



The East African nation, which relies on tourism as a major source of foreign exchange and jobs, had 2.05 million tourists last year, an increase of 1%, said Najib Balala.



An attack on a hotel and office complex in Nairobi last January, and a general slowdown in the global tourism business, were to blame for the low growth in arrival numbers, he said.



Along with agricultural exports and money sent home by Kenyans living abroad, tourism is one of the top foreign exchange earners.



Kenya has a variety of products, from beach holidays at the coast to Safaris in the Maasai Mara wildlife reserve, but it attracts fewer visitors than African competitors like South Africa due to frequent political upheavals and insurgent attacks.



Between 2012 and 2015, visitor numbers and tourism earnings fell after a spate of attacks claimed by Somalia’s al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab, which wants Nairobi to pull its troops out of Somalia.



A reduction in attacks in the years that followed allowed the sector to rebound.



($1 = 101.5000 Kenyan shillings)



Reporting by George Obulutsa; Editing by Duncan Miriri and Kim Coghill

Kenya’s tourism earnings up 3.9%

The 2010s kicked off a decade of uncertainty within the job market. Many sectors were still dealing with the aftermath of the Great Recession, the national&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2010/ted_20100217.htm" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">unemployment rate</a>&nbsp;sat at 9.7%, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.epi.org/press/class_of_2010_faces_worst_job_market_in_a_generation_says_epi_report/" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">class of 2010</a>&nbsp;graduated into the worst job market in a generation, and by the summer of 2010, more than a million job seekers&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/id/37554163" class="">quit looking for employment</a>.



However, now at the close of the decade, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/06/us-nonfarm-payrolls-november-2019.html" class="">job market has markedly improved</a>&nbsp;for most workers. That’s especially true for those in the technology space.



While developing tech has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/05/map-the-us-cities-where-robots-are-impacting-jobs-the-most.html" class="">eliminated some job functions</a>, it’s also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/27/high-paid-well-educated-white-collar-jobs-heavily-affected-by-ai-new-report.html" class="">redefined</a>&nbsp;and created completely new roles in the past 10 years — many that pay well, thanks in part to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/06/how-switching-careers-to-tech-could-solve-the-us-talent-shortage.html" class="">a short supply of workers</a>&nbsp;with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/19/these-will-be-the-top-10-most-popular-tech-skills-of-2020.html" class="">right skill sets</a>&nbsp;to fill emerging jobs that are crucial to keeping businesses competitive.



<a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/make-it/">CNBC Make It</a> spoke with Glassdoor senior economic research analyst Amanda Stansell about the jobs that barely existed at the turn of the decade, but that have exploded in growth and median base pay through the 2010s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Data scientist: $107,697 per year</h2>



In 2012, Harvard Business Review named data scientist&nbsp;<a href="https://hbr.org/2012/10/data-scientist-the-sexiest-job-of-the-21st-century" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">“the sexiest job of the 21st century</a>.” And for the past four years, Glassdoor has recognized it as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/22/glassdoor-the-20-best-jobs-in-america-in-2019.html" class="">No. 1 job in the U.S.</a>&nbsp;based on job satisfaction, pay and opportunities.



Stansell says demand for data scientists is still most concentrated within the tech industry, but that it’s growing across every sector: health care, finance, business, retail, media and beyond.



“All these companies have a need for a data scientist who can make use of the growing amount of data they have and turn it into something valuable,” Stansell says.



While the term “data science” was first coined as an independent discipline (separate from traditional statistics) in 2001 by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stat.purdue.edu/~wsc/" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">William S. Cleveland</a>, jobs in data science have grown most rapidly since 2010. That’s because as more companies are investing in technology to collect user data, the need for professionals to interpret said data has skyrocketed.



Because it’s still a relatively new field, many of today’s data scientists have varied backgrounds in computer science, math, statistics and engineering. However, <a class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/article/2017/03/15/data-analytics-programs-taking-colleges" target="_blank">more universities</a> have begun offering specific degrees, courses and even bootcamps in data science within the past decade.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information security engineer: $100,553 per year</h2>



Since 2010, data breaches have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/23/the-10-biggest-data-hacks-of-the-decade.html" class="">compromised over 38 billion accounts,</a>&nbsp;according to the cybersecurity firm Risk Based Security.



These breaches, and the need to protect user data, has resulted in information security being one of the fastest-growing fields. Information security engineers work to safeguard an organization’s computer network systems, and plan and carry out security measures to protect sensitive information from infiltration and cyber attacks.



“As there have been more and more high-profile data breaches in recent years, this has translated to companies seeing the need for having people who can help them protect their data,” Stansell says.



The field is projected to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/information-security-analysts.htm" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">grow by 32% through 2028</a>, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. (The average growth rate for all occupations is 5%.)



However, the need for information security engineers has far eclipsed the number of people with the skills to do the job. The U.S. Department of Commerce&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/09/cybersecurity-jobs-non-technical-workers.html" class="">recently estimated</a>&nbsp;there are 350,000 unfilled cybersecurity jobs in the country. Cybersecurity Ventures, an analytics and research company, estimates 3.5 million jobs in cybersecurity around the world are likely to go unfilled by 2021.



This talent shortage means workers in the field are paid handsomely. While Glassdoor data says information security engineers earn a median base salary of just over $100,000 per year, top-level jobs in the field, like chief information security officer, can yield <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/09/cybersecurity-jobs-non-technical-workers.html">pay above $300,000 in top metro areas</a>, according to cybersecurity recruiting firm SilverBull.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Director of diversity and inclusion: $98,154 per year</h2>



The only top-paying emerging job of the decade that doesn’t fall into the tech space is one that focuses on workplace culture, particularly within diversity and inclusion. The position of D&amp;I director is so new, Glassdoor doesn’t have adequate pay data for the specific role, but uses Human Resources Director salaries with an average pay of $98,154 per year as a guide.



According to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/about-us/diversity-inclusion-2019/" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">2019 Glassdoor survey</a>, 61% of U.S. employees have witnessed or experienced discrimination in the workplace based on age, race, gender or LGBTQ identity. Meanwhile, the career site saw a 30% increase in the past year of diversity and inclusion job openings, such as D&amp;I director, program manager, diversity recruiter and D&amp;I consultant.



“This signals that these are issues employees are facing, and employers are catching up and trying to make an impact in this field,” Stansell says, “which is really an encouraging sign that employers are making the investment towards an inclusive workplace.”



Larger companies with 5,000 or more employees are the ones making the biggest investment in growing their D&amp;I departments, likely because they have the financial resources to do so.



Stansell predicts progress in these types of roles will continue into the next decade. According to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/press-releases/inclusion-survey.html" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">2017 survey from Deloitte</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/26/75-percent-of-execs-would-leave-their-company-for-one-that-values-diversity.html" class="">72% of employees</a>&nbsp;said they would consider leaving their company to join another with better diversity initiatives and programs.



“In the next few years, we’ll continue to see medium-sized companies invest in diversity and inclusion, especially as it is such an important thing to job seekers,” Stansell says.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sales engineer: $90,000 per year</h2>



Sales engineers work for tech companies to sell customized software and products to other businesses looking to expand their IT efforts.



“As tech companies are offering really high-value products to potential customers, they need to have the ability to adapt to each individual [client],” Stansell says. “Having a sales engineer, who is a communicator between the sales and engineering aspects, is really important make sure that the needs of the potential customer are met.”



Because workers must have extensive knowledge of these products and understand the scientific processes behind their operations, sales engineers tend to have technical backgrounds (for example, a degree in computer science or engineering). However, Stansell adds they also need solid interpersonal skills such as communication, negotiation and marketing know-how in order to provide customized solutions to clients during the sales process.



Those with a marketing background may also be able to learn more about tech products and software in order to transition into this type of role.



While Glassdoor puts the annual median salary of a sales engineer at $90,000 per year, pay can vary based on what they’re selling. For example, the <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/23/glassdoor-the-7-highest-paying-sales-jobs-in-the-us.html">Bureau of Labor Statistics says</a> those operating in the telecommunications industry tend to earn the most, about <a class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.bls.gov/ooh/sales/sales-engineers.htm#tab-5" target="_blank">$118,000 a year</a>, followed by sales engineers in computer systems design and wholesale electronic markets, who also command six-figure salaries.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Salesforce developer: $80,357 per year</h2>



While Salesforce, the cloud-based software company that specializes in customer relationship management, was founded in 1999, its influence in U.S. workplaces expanded vastly in the past 10 years, so much so that the role of Salesforce developer became a sought-after position at companies such as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/Job/jobs.htm?sc.keyword=salesforce%20developer&amp;amp;locT=&amp;amp;locId=0&amp;amp;locKeyword=&amp;amp;jobType=all&amp;amp;fromAge=-1&amp;amp;minSalary=0&amp;amp;includeNoSalaryJobs=true&amp;amp;radius=25&amp;amp;cityId=-1&amp;amp;minRating=0.0&amp;amp;industryId=-1&amp;amp;sgocId=-1&amp;amp;seniorityType=all&amp;amp;companyId=-1&amp;amp;employerSizes=5&amp;amp;applicationType=0&amp;amp;remoteWorkType=0" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Google, Amazon, PwC and Uber</a>.



As a Salesforce developer, workers use the Salesforce platform or cloud technology to code software or application solutions for their company to better connect with customers, partners and potential customers.



“It’s a job completely born out of successful technology product that’s changed the ways companies function and organize data,” Stansell says.



Developers generally have a background in computer science and may&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/19/these-will-be-the-top-10-most-popular-tech-skills-of-2020.html" class="">pursue certification</a>&nbsp;in specific&nbsp;<a href="https://trailhead.salesforce.com/credentials/developeroverview" class="" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Salesforce applications</a>&nbsp;or processes. That said, these developers also need&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/21/10-top-soft-skills-to-master-for-2020-if-you-want-a-raise-promotion-or-new-job.html" class="">soft skills</a>, such as communication, in order to interpret data and workflows for a non-technical audience.



“I think we’ll continue to see this trend in the future with really successful tech products,” Stansell says, adding, “people who are able to learn those skills and apply them for different companies can have really great career paths.”



This article was first published on CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/30/5-high-paying-growing-jobs-that-will-be-booming-through-the-2020s.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/30/5-high-paying-growing-jobs-that-will-be-booming-through-the-2020s.html</a> and is republished with its permission.

These 5 high-paying, growing jobs didn’t exist a decade ago—but they’ll be booming through the 2020s

<div style="max-width: 700px;"><video-js data-account="1571595826001" data-player="default" data-embed="default" controls="" data-video-id="6113334014001" data-playlist-id="" data-application-id="" class="vjs-fluid"></video-js></div>
<script src="https://players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.min.js"></script>
The theme of this year&#8217;s African Economic Conference focuses on jobs, entrepreneurship and capacity development for African youths. This was jointly organised by African Development Bank (AfDB), United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Hanan Morsy, Director for Macroeconomic Forecasting and Research at AfDB joins CNBC Africa to discuss the ways to build capacity development for African youths.

African Economic Conference: Hanan Morsy on how to build capacity development for African youths

<div style="max-width: 700px;"><video-js data-account="1571595826001" data-player="default" data-embed="default" controls="" data-video-id="6097738658001" data-playlist-id="" data-application-id="" class="vjs-fluid"></video-js></div>
<script src="https://players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.min.js"></script>
The issue of reskilling Africa&#8217;s workforce for the jobs of the future is a challenge with not so many practical solutions at the moment. CEO of Empower, and member of The Africa List, Miranda Naiman joins CNBC Africa for more.

Miranda Naiman assesses how Africa List is reshaping continent by reskilling its workforce

Content supplied by Siemens 



Although
the notion of shared value, CSI and businesses giving back to the communities
in which they operate is nothing new, it is becoming more imperative for
businesses to integrate the well-being of society into their core objectives.
In many instances, contributing to society is a secondary objective for
businesses and yet without a healthy flourishing society, we cannot be
successful in business.



Currently
South Africa faces many challenges and whilst government has outlined key
priorities in the 2030 National Development Plan, businesses need to both align
and contribute to addressing these challenges. Some of the main issues we face
include unemployment, employment equity and lack of transformation, and
environmental sustainability and these areas should be translated into what we
do as businesses. We should be aligning ourselves to the agenda of government
and we should essentially start reporting on what, we as businesses, are doing
to uplift South Africa.



For
the past five years Siemens has taken this approach and translated it into a
Business to Society approach whereby we take the development of the country and
embed it into our business model. We have made an effort to report on how we
have added value to society and how we contribute to the country, by showcasing
results.



In
doing so we have seen great results in creating more than 1500 jobs, growing
our female work force to be 28,6% of the company, maintaining a B-BBEE level 2
status, and enabling our customers to lower their CO2 emission. However, over
the past few years we have taken key learnings in terms of contributing to society.



<ol class="wp-block-list"><li>If you stimulate the right growth in
society – your business grows:</li></ol>



When businesses aim to put
society at the centre of what they do, it is imperative to firstly understand
societal needs and secondly be able to link this back to your business offering.
This is the difference between development and pure philanthropy. For example,
any business should be able to manage skills development, however it will need
to consider which skills lead to employment and fills the skills gap in South
Africa.



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>For real impact you need to look
beyond your own business:</li></ul>



It is true that business
should continue to upskill their own employees and manage their own
sustainability in terms of both the environment as well as the economic health
of the company. Having said that, for a business to have a wider impact on
society, businesses also need to enable their suppliers through enterprise and
supplier training and development, as well as provide their customers with
solutions to impact society. If we are not enabling other businesses through
the work we do as companies, then we are missing opportunities for these
businesses to grow and in turn contribute to the growth of the country.



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Measure, report and evaluate:</li></ul>



It is critical to not only set
goals against your efforts to uplift society, but also to measure the outcome
and report on it to track year-on-year improvements and evaluate your
programmes to ensure they remain both relevant and effective. This should be
done on a yearly basis in alignment with the social, economic and political
climate of the country with a consistent focus on the needs of the community.



As a global business, we take
key learnings from our other operations, however everything we do is localised
for impact. 



Businesses can no longer afford not
to contribute to society if we don’t uplift the communities in which we
operate, our future in South Africa will also be affected. By building the
country in line with both its potential and challenges, we are building a
destination attractive for investment, growth and development.

Op-Ed: The time is now for business to uplift society

<div style="max-width: 700px;"><video-js data-account="1571595826001" data-player="default" data-embed="default" controls="" data-video-id="6092914519001" data-playlist-id="" data-application-id="" class="vjs-fluid"></video-js></div>
<script src="https://players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.min.js"></script>
More young people are finding it harder to find jobs in Uganda than ever before with the country experiencing its highest unemployment rates in decades. Founder and CEO of Boundless Minds in Uganda, Benjamin Rukwengye joins CNBC Africa.

Boundless Minds CEO: How African youths can bridge the unemployment gap

By <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/kathleen-elkins/">Kathleen Elkins</a>



Berkshire Hathaway chairman and CEO Warren Buffett believes in working with people you respect.



“Try to work for whomever you admire most,” the investing legend told author Gillian Zoe Segal in an interview for her 2015 book,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1419715704/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;camp=1789&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;creative=9325&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;creativeASIN=1419715704&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;linkCode=as2&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;tag=getti043-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;linkId=X6UNEWPT2UNOA7CQ%20%5Ct%20_blank" class="">“Getting There: A Book of Mentors.”</a>&nbsp;“It won’t necessarily be the job that you’ll have 10 years later, but you’ll have the opportunity to pick up so much as you go along.”



It’s advice that served him well: When he was starting his career, well before he made his billions, Buffett took a job with his mentor and hero, Benjamin Graham, without even asking about the salary. “I found that out at the end of the month when I got my paycheck,” he told Segal.



The decision paid off, career-wise. Buffett, who was one of Graham’s students at Columbia Business School, says that his former professor largely <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/10/billionaire-warren-buffett-tribute-to-investor-teaches-how-to-live-a-successful-and-happy-life.html">shaped his career and investment philosophy</a>.



While&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/25/most-employees-dont-negotiate-their-salary.html" class="">salary is an important factor&nbsp;</a>when thinking about your career, “You don’t want to take a job just for the money,” said Buffett, “and you should never work for people who make your stomach churn or who keep you up at night.”



Buffett’s longtime business partner,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/charlie-munger/" class="">Charlie Munger</a>, who has also made a name for himself as one of today’s most successful investors, offers similar career advice. “Don’t work for anyone you don’t respect and admire,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/16/warren-buffetts-partner-charlie-munger-has-3-rules-for-a-career.html" class="">he has said</a>.&nbsp;“Work only with people you enjoy.”



The two billionaires agree that this advice is most effective if you’ve chosen a career path that interests you. “I have never succeeded very much in anything in which I was not very interested,” Munger said. “If you can’t somehow find yourself very interested in something, I don’t think you’ll succeed very much, even if you’re fairly smart.”



Passion pays off, Buffett told Segal: “You want to be excited when you get out of bed in the morning. I tap dance to work every day.”



This article first appeared on CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/04/warren-buffetts-top-career-advice.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/04/warren-buffetts-top-career-advice.html</a> and is republished with its permission.

Before Warren Buffett made his fortune, he took a job without asking what the salary was—here’s why

By <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/karen-gilchrist/">Karen Gilchrist</a>



<a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/search/?query=Artificial%20intelligence">Artificial intelligence</a> and <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/cloud-computing/">cloud computing</a> are terms once reserved for the realms of science fiction. But, today, they’ve become an increasingly important — and lucrative — fixture of the employment landscape.



“Some of the top skills we’re seeing that are in great demand are artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing,” Feon Ang, vice president for talent and learning solutions in Asia Pacific at professional networking site&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/?symbol=LNKD" class="">LinkedIn</a>.



The demand applies globally. However, it especially pertains to the <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/19/linkedin-these-are-the-most-in-demand-skills-jobs-in-asia-pacific.html">most sought-after skills in Asia Pacific</a>, which is currently suffering a “brain drain,” whereby talented workers are relocating overseas for better socio-economic prospects, Ang told CNBC’s “Capital Connection” Tuesday.



Tech skills should not be viewed in isolation, though — especially given the changing nature of technology.



By some measures, the average skill now lasts&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/20/creative-skills-critical-to-protect-workers-from-automation-expert.html" class="">just six years</a>, which means that workers should be well-equipped with the skills to adapt to the changing work environment.



Such so-called soft skills include <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/21/future-of-work-these-5-traits-pose-the-biggest-skills-gap-linkedin.html">critical thinking, creativity, and problem solving</a>, noted Ang.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/CNBC-.png" alt="" class="wp-image-343463" width="436" height="526"/></figure></div>



Increasingly, employers and governments are looking at ways to prepare their workforce for such shifts in the jobs landscape.



Amazon&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/11/amazon-plans-to-spend-700-million-to-retrain-a-third-of-its-workforce-in-new-skills-wsj.html" class="">announced last month</a>&nbsp;that it plans to invest $700 million to retrain a third of its workforce. Meanwhile, Democratic presidential hopeful Andrew Yang is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/19/andrew-yang-on-google-amazon-helping-pay-for-his-ubi-plan.html" class="">rallying support for a universal basic income</a>&nbsp;to help Americans cope with volatile future work prospects.



Non-profit organizations, such as international training academy&nbsp;<a href="https://www.womenwhocode.com/" class="">Women Who Code</a>, are also cropping up to address growing skills gaps.



Women Who Code provides training and support from women pursuing careers in tech specifically. But the firm’s CEO, Alaina Percival, told CNBC Tuesday that more companies should be providing training, regardless of whether or not their employees’ work is directly technical.



“This really needs to be done more broadly and it needs to be starting at even younger ages,” said Percival. “Every industry is becoming a technology industry. There aren’t enough highly skilled workers to fill the current market needs.”



However, the responsibility for picking up new skills also falls to individuals, said Ang.



She said the growing availability of free training courses has made accessing education much simpler.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/learning/" class="">LinkedIn Learning</a>, for instance, hosts a wide range of video-based courses, she noted. Meanwhile, more than 10,000 free — or partially free — programs from&nbsp;<a href="https://qz.com/1437623/600-free-online-courses-you-can-take-from-universities-worldwide/" class="">a consortium of 800 universities are also available online</a>&nbsp;via a scheme called Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs).



“It’s important for companies to continue to invest in their people so that they are upskilling and reskilling their people to keep up with the roles that are in demand,” said Ang.



“But, at the same time, people need to continue to invest in themselves and have a growth mind set,” she said.



This article first appeared on CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/22/linkedin-ai-big-data-cloud-computing-among-top-future-tech-skills.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/22/linkedin-ai-big-data-cloud-computing-among-top-future-tech-skills.html</a> and is republished with its permission.

LinkedIn calls these 3 of the most sought-after tech skills

By <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/courtney-connley/">Courtney Connley</a>



Traditionally, candidates have been advised to broach the topic of salary only after a job offer is on the table.



But bestselling management author and CNBC contributor Suzy Welch says that the rules have changed: In&nbsp;today’s economy, it’s completely acceptable to discuss salary up front.



Welch tells <a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/make-it/">CNBC Make It</a> it all comes down to “simple economics.”



“Obviously, not all regions and industries are hot,” she says. “But in general, hiring managers are sweating bullets these days. Good candidates are hard to find and even harder to land.”



The upside to today’s tight job market, Welch says, is that “job seekers have leverage, which means you can ask about money when you want — even in the first conversation.” This also means that both the job seeker and the hiring manager are free to “make sure you’re on the same page before you slog through three or four interviews, only to find out you’re moneybags apart.”



But these new rules don’t mean that job seekers should say whatever they want&nbsp;— language, tone and approach are still important.&nbsp;



“Jerks still have a hard time getting hired,” Welch says. “Try something like, ‘This job sounds fantastic and I’m very excited about it. Could you just help me understand the salary range so we can make sure we’re aligned before moving forward?’”



Welch emphasizes that “no economic boom goes on forever, and someday, when tough times return, so may this taboo.” But until that happens, she says, there’s no reason not to be up-front about your expectations from the beginning.&nbsp;



“Go ahead and talk money early. You know you want to, and at last, for now and nicely, you can.”



Suzy Welch is the co-founder of the <a class="" href="http://jwmi.com/?mcv=jdg469">Jack Welch Management Institute</a>and a noted business journalist, TV commentator and public speaker. Think you need Suzy to fix your career? Email her at gettowork@cnbc.com.



This article first appeared on CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/05/suzy-welch-heres-when-to-discuss-salary-in-a-job-interview.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/05/suzy-welch-heres-when-to-discuss-salary-in-a-job-interview.html</a> and is republished with its permission.

Suzy Welch: The rules have changed—here’s when to discuss salary in a job interview

PRETORIA (Reuters) &#8211; South Africa’s second quarter unemployment rate rose to 29.0%, its highest level in more than a decade, from 27.6% in the first quarter, official data showed on Tuesday.



There were 6.7 million people without jobs in the three months to the end of June, compared with 6.2 million people in the prior quarter, Statistics South Africa said its quarterly labour force survey.



“This is highest it has gone since the first quarter of 2008 since we began the quarterly labour force survey,” said Statistician General Risenga Maluleke.



Employment losses were mainly driven by private households, transport, mining and finance, Stats SA said.



The expanded definition of unemployment, which includes people who have stopped looking for work, rose to 38.5% in the second quarter from 38.0% in the previous quarter.



Reporting by Mfuneko Toyana; Writing by Tanisha Heiberg; Editing by Andrew Heavens

South Africa’s unemployment rate rises to 29% in Q2

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; The South African unit of Ford Motor Co said on Wednesday it would hire an additional 1,200 staff at one of its local assembly plants, an increase of over 25 percent, to add an extra shift and raise production.



The additional shift, which will increase production to 720 vehicles per day, is the result of a 3 billion rand ($215 million) investment in South Africa that was announced in 2017, aimed at increasing annual production to 168,000 units.



The U.S.-owned company currently employs around 4,300 people in South Africa, at the plant in the Silverton suburb of South Africa’s administrative capital Pretoria, which will add the extra shift, and at another site in the coastal city of Port Elizabeth.



“The third shift will allow us to ramp up our production from the current 506 vehicles assembled per day to a peak of 720 units to satisfy the strong demand from customers in South Africa, as well as for our crucial exports to 148 markets around the world,” Ockert Berry, vice president of operations for Ford Middle East and Africa said in a statement.



Ford joins a number of other global carmakers in ramping up production on the continent, which promises rapid growth at the same time as trade tensions and upsets like the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union threaten their operations elsewhere.



The South African arm of Japanese carmaker Nissan also announced a similarly sized investment earlier this year, increasing production at its local plant by 30,000 units, while BMW production chief Oliver Zipse said earlier this month that it had moved some production from the UK as a result of Brexit, and that British plants no longer built South African components.



Around a third of Ford’s local production is sold in South Africa and other sub-Saharan African countries, with the rest exported elsewhere.



The additional shift will start in August and will be focused on the New Ranger, Ranger Raptor and Everest models. The locally-built Ranger is ranked as the top-selling pick-up in Europe and leads light commercial vehicle exports.



The plant in Port Elizabeth produces 120,000 diesel engines per year for the Silverton plant, as well as 130,000 units per year for export to North America, China and Europe and 280,000 component sets per year.



($1 = 13.9720 rand)



Reporting by Emma Rumney; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle

jobs

UK suffers biggest job losses since 2009 as COVID hits

Job cuts announced by U.S. companies jump 54% in July: report

Moody’s downgrades SA to junk

How Africa can prepare for the disruptive impact of automation, robotics on the future of work

How cycling could help boost tourism numbers in Rwanda’s Kivu-Belt

These 20 companies around the world are on a hiring spree for work-from-home jobs

Kenya’s tourism earnings up 3.9%

These 5 high-paying, growing jobs didn’t exist a decade ago—but they’ll be booming through the 2020s

African Economic Conference: Hanan Morsy on how to build capacity development for African youths

Miranda Naiman assesses how Africa List is reshaping continent by reskilling its workforce

Op-Ed: The time is now for business to uplift society

Boundless Minds CEO: How African youths can bridge the unemployment gap

Before Warren Buffett made his fortune, he took a job without asking what the salary was—here’s why

LinkedIn calls these 3 of the most sought-after tech skills

Suzy Welch: The rules have changed—here’s when to discuss salary in a job interview

South Africa’s unemployment rate rises to 29% in Q2

South African subsidiary of carmaker Ford plans to add 1,200 jobs

News Tips

Advertise With Us

jobs

UK suffers biggest job losses since 2009 as COVID hits

Job cuts announced by U.S. companies jump 54% in July: report

Moody’s downgrades SA to junk

How Africa can prepare for the disruptive impact of automation, robotics on the future of work

How cycling could help boost tourism numbers in Rwanda’s Kivu-Belt

These 20 companies around the world are on a hiring spree for work-from-home jobs

Kenya’s tourism earnings up 3.9%

These 5 high-paying, growing jobs didn’t exist a decade ago—but they’ll be booming through the 2020s

African Economic Conference: Hanan Morsy on how to build capacity development for African youths

Miranda Naiman assesses how Africa List is reshaping continent by reskilling its workforce

Op-Ed: The time is now for business to uplift society

Boundless Minds CEO: How African youths can bridge the unemployment gap

Before Warren Buffett made his fortune, he took a job without asking what the salary was—here’s why

LinkedIn calls these 3 of the most sought-after tech skills

Suzy Welch: The rules have changed—here’s when to discuss salary in a job interview

South Africa’s unemployment rate rises to 29% in Q2

South African subsidiary of carmaker Ford plans to add 1,200 jobs

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Newsletters