It is not only the Edcon clothing industry that is struggling, as many businesses have had to close their doors in recent months.
This is a far darker picture than Edgars had managed to get a loan to relieve his debt burden and retain his staff.
Edcon would not have been able to smoke the pipe if it had not received a lifeline of R2.7 billion, but that benefit did not befall the smaller businesses and more companies were forced to close the doors.
Edcon had another advantage – no one wanted to see its 140,000 workers lose their jobs, but small businesses couldn’t keep their staff, and retrenchment was pretty “unobtrusive”.
Construction company is suffering from poor economic conditions, and Group Five is struggling to keep its 3,500 workers in service.
However, this is just the tip of the iceberg, and if the scale does not swing positively, economists provide a greater dark time for workers in the country.Continue reading…
