Staff challenges put franchise support on South Africa’s agenda

Staff challenges are back in focus for South Africa’s franchise community after a September 2026 commentary revisited Franchise Association of South Africa (Fasa) survey findings. The 2023 survey identified staff as a challenge for 42% of franchisor respondents, providing a starting point for a closer look at people support across franchise networks.

What the findings show

Writing in Bizcommunity on 10 September 2026, Larry Hodes highlighted three areas of pressure recorded in the Fasa survey. Six in ten franchisors identified costs as a major challenge, while 45% pointed to franchisee-related issues and 42% to staff.

The staffing figure deserves attention in its own right. It places people-related concerns alongside the financial and relationship pressures identified by respondents, rather than leaving them as a secondary operational consideration.

However, the date matters. These are findings from a survey undertaken in 2023, cited in a commentary published in 2026. They should not be presented as a fresh measurement of staffing conditions this year.

The supplied findings also do not explain what respondents meant by staff challenges. They do not establish whether recruitment, retention, training, management or another concern was the main difficulty. Each is a useful subject for further questioning, but none can be treated as the survey’s confirmed explanation.

A clearer brief for franchise support

For franchisors reviewing their support offer, the practical question is not simply whether staffing is difficult. It is which difficulties franchisees need help addressing, and what support the network can realistically provide.

A useful review could separate recruitment guidance, induction, ongoing training and day-to-day people management. These are suggested categories for investigation, not a breakdown supplied by the research. Keeping them separate would allow a network to ask more precise questions than a broad request for feedback on “staff issues”.

The next step could be to compare what franchisees request with what the franchisor currently offers. Where support exists, is it clearly explained? Where a concern falls outside that support, is the division of responsibility understood?

The survey figure does not answer those questions. Its value here is to give franchise leaders a reason to ask them, without assuming that every brand or outlet faces the same problem.

Questions for prospective franchisees

For anyone assessing a franchise opportunity, the findings offer a prompt to examine the people-support arrangements alongside the commercial proposition.

Prospective franchisees could ask what staff training is included at opening, whether further training is available, and how questions about workplace management are handled. They should seek clarity on any associated charges and on which responsibilities remain with the franchisee.

It would also be sensible to ask existing franchisees about their experience of using that support. Questions should be specific: what assistance did they request, what was provided, and what would they want clarified before opening another outlet?

These are due-diligence suggestions, not evidence that any particular franchise has a staffing weakness. The research names no individual network in connection with the 42% finding, and it provides no basis for comparing brands or judging the quality of their support.

Keep the evidence and the response distinct

The three headline percentages describe challenges reported by franchisors. They do not, on their own, demonstrate that staff concerns caused franchisee-related difficulties, or that either was caused by higher costs. Treating them as a proven chain of events would go beyond the supplied evidence.

Nor does the research establish whether staffing pressures have improved or worsened since 2023. A current assessment would require more recent evidence and a clearer account of the underlying problems.

For the franchise community, the constructive response is therefore a focused conversation rather than a sweeping conclusion. Franchisors can use the finding to guide questions about their support, while prospective franchisees can use it to sharpen their checks before committing.

Practical takeaway: Ask for a clear explanation of staff training and people-management support, including responsibilities and charges. Use the 2023 findings as a prompt for current questions, not as a verdict on an individual franchise.