Financial strain increases for frontline workers - Deskless Worker Pulse 2025
The Deskless Worker Pulse 2025 has revealed the increasing financial pressure on South Africa's frontline staff, with over half of these workers confirming they have no savings.
Image source: pch.vector from Freepik
This report, the second annual study from Jem HR, highlighted that 51% of frontline workers have no savings, up from 44% last year. Nearly three-quarters (73%) have less than R500 saved, and almost half (48%) run out of money before month-end, every single month.
These are sobering statistics, made even more eye-opening when you consider that 97% of deskless workers reportedly enjoy their jobs.
“These are people earning between R4,000 and R10,000 a month. They’re the backbone of South Africa’s economy and they are not coping,” says Nonsuku Mthimkhulu, head of Customer at Jem. “With many on the breadline and relentless increases in transport and food costs, saving is a luxury most simply can’t afford.”
The report draws on 4,600 interviews with frontline employees across sectors like security, retail, hygiene, logistics, and sanitation. It paints a sobering picture of how the cost-of-living crisis is eroding financial resilience among those who cannot work from home — and who rarely have a voice in national economic debates.
Motivated by more than just money
Despite worsening financial strain, frontline workers continue to show remarkable resolve. Nearly 4 in 10 (39%) say they are motivated by the purpose of their work, an increase from 35% in 2024.
“I do my job to the best of my abilities, because when I help a customer and they are grateful and leave with a smile, it makes the work I do worthwhile,” says one retail worker interviewed for the report.
Transport costs and safety concerns remain a silent crisis. Almost a third (30%) of workers cite transport as their top source of stress. This places significant strain on finances, but also impacts safety and productivity.
“Many workers are exhausted before they even arrive at work,” Mthimkhulu adds. “Unreliable, unsafe or increasingly more expensive transport continues to chip away at their energy, their morale and their income.”
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Tracking progress and calling for action
To better measure financial well-being, Jem has introduced the Deskless Pulse Score, a composite index that tracks savings, income stability, debt reliance and financial stress. The goal is to help employers and policymakers move from reactive interventions to sustained, measurable change.
“South Africa’s frontline employees cannot work themselves out of financial vulnerability,” says Caroline van der Merwe, Jem’s chief product officer.
“It will take structured, long-term strategies. Fairer transport allowances, payroll-linked savings and earned wage access, more affordable data, among other interventions, can improve the situation. These can only be driven by employers who recognise that this will not only benefit their businesses, but society as a whole.”
Deskless workers make up three-quarters of the national workforce. Their resilience keeps the country running, but resilience has limits. This year’s findings signal troubling financial distress, and highlight an urgent need for collaboration between business, government and labour to build a more sustainable model for those who hold up the economy’s foundation.