A country-wide shortage of skilled IT people in South Africa is causing banks in the country to fight over the few candidates available for employment. A report by Sunday Times and MyBroadband says banks are having to pay up to 30% more to hire and retain IT professionals especially for skills needed in their digital migration projects.
South African has long been a destination for qualified IT professionals after gaining some experience in Zimbabwe. South Africa, however, is itself losing IT skills to other countries.
From Mybroadband:
Standard Bank, Absa, Nedbank, and FNB all said that it was becoming increasingly difficult to find skilled IT workers to aid in their digital migration efforts.
The banks have implemented a number of new hiring tactics to try and attract skilled South Africans, including “speed-dating” events where a large number of candidates undergo quick interviews in an effort to hire qualified IT professionals quickly.
Standard Bank CIO Alpheus Mangale told the Sunday Times that it faced a major shortage of cloud engineers to maintain its online systems.
When banks do find these skilled workers, they can expect to pay these employees up to 30% more to retain them, he said.
Absa, FNB, and Nedbank also stated that they are paying a premium to hire skilled IT workers due to the country-wide shortage.
Qualified professionals are leaving South Africa in droves, citing the ongoing problems of crime, economic uncertainty, and political problems as reasons for their emigration.
This has become increasingly apparent in emigration statistics, and for every skilled worker coming to South Africa, eight are leaving.