Why retail is the fastest way into a first job
Retail hires more first-time job seekers in South Africa than any other sector. It takes people with no experience, no degree and often no matric, and it trains them on the floor. Shoprite Group alone has taken on more than 11,000 young people through the YES programme.
If you have been applying for months with nothing coming back, retail is where the volume is. This guide covers the actual route in, and the one thing that stops most people.
What the YES programme actually is
YES stands for Youth Employment Service. It is a private-sector programme, not a government jobs scheme. Companies host unemployed young people for 12 months, full time, and paid. In exchange the company earns B-BBEE scorecard points.
That last part matters to you. It means the programme keeps running whether or not the economy is good, because the company has a reason beyond goodwill to keep it going.
Who qualifies
For a B-BBEE programme you need to be:
- Black, as defined by the B-BBEE codes
- Between 18 and 34 years old
- A South African citizen
- Currently unemployed
Some programmes are not B-BBEE linked, and those are open to all races and all ages.
No matric required, and this is the part people miss
You do not need matric for a YES placement. YES states plainly that it is aimed at unemployed youth aged 18 to 34 regardless of the level of education you have obtained.
If you have Grade 9, Grade 10 or Grade 11 and you have been skipping retail adverts because they say matric, look again. Many of those adverts are for the retailer’s permanent posts. YES intakes are separate, and they are the ones that take you without it.
The mistake almost everyone makes
YES does not recruit. There is no YES office to visit, no YES application form, and no YES email address that will put you on a list.
You apply in one of two places:
- sayouth.mobi — the official zero-rated platform. Free, and it costs you no data.
- The retailer’s own careers page. Shoprite, Pick n Pay, Clicks and TFG each advertise their own intakes.
If you are waiting for YES to contact you, you will wait forever. Nothing happens until you register and apply.
How to register on sayouth.mobi
Registration takes about four minutes. Do it on your phone.
- Open sayouth.mobi
- If you have never registered with SA Youth, Harambee or Tshepo 1 Million, tap Join the Network
- You can register with your ID number. If you do not have an ID number, you can still register.
- Fill in your location, contact details, education and any volunteering you have done
- Opportunities in your area appear. Use Search to filter by type and area.
- Tap an opportunity, read it, then tap Apply now
If you already registered on harambee.mobi or tshepo.mobi, you are already on the system. Just log in with those details.
Why you have to check it every single day
Every advert shows a closing date. But most also carry a maximum number of applications. When that number is reached the system closes the advert, even if the closing date is still weeks away.
The good retail intakes fill up in days. If you check once a week you will consistently arrive after they have closed, and conclude that there is nothing there. There is. You are just late.
Log in daily. It takes five minutes.
If you live in a rural area
You do not need to move to a city to qualify. YES explicitly encourages youth wherever they are situated and states that there is no need to relocate to urban centres. Retail chains have stores in every town, and placements are usually made at the store nearest you.
The scam warning
SAYouth is 100% free and zero-rated. No SA Youth staff member or partner will ever ask you for money at any point.
So if anyone asks you for a registration fee, a “placement fee”, or your bank details to “process” a retail job, it is a scam. There is no such thing as paying for a YES placement. How to check whether a job is real lists the rest of the red flags.
What to have ready before you apply
- Your ID number
- A CV: one page, PDF, no photo. The seven mistakes that get you rejected instantly covers what to remove.
- A phone number you actually answer
- Your nearest town
What the 12 months actually gets you
A YES placement is a 12-month contract, not a permanent job. Be clear-eyed about that.
But it is twelve months of till experience, stockroom work and customer-facing service, with a reference from a national brand at the end of it. That reference is what the next employer asks for, and it is the one thing you cannot get by applying from home.
Treat it as a paid audition. Plenty of YES participants are kept on, or move to a competitor on the strength of it.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need matric to get a YES placement?
No. YES is open to unemployed youth aged 18 to 34 regardless of the level of education you have obtained. If you have been skipping adverts that ask for matric, the routes that do not need it are worth reading next.
Does registering on sayouth.mobi use data?
No. The site is zero-rated, which means it does not use your data. It is also completely free. Nobody should ever ask you to pay.
How long does a YES placement last?
Twelve months, full time. It is a work experience contract rather than a permanent appointment, although some participants are retained afterwards.
Next step
Register on sayouth.mobi today and set a daily reminder to check it. Then fix your CV, because that is the document that decides whether the application goes anywhere.
When you are ready to apply for permanent posts as well, browse current retail and general vacancies.