Shoprite Group – YES People Apprentice 2026

The Shoprite Group is inviting applications for a YES: People Apprentice – HR Technology & People Support opportunity based in Brackenfell, Cape Town, Western Cape. This fixed-term Youth Employment Service (YES) programme role provides practical exposure to human resources, recruitment, employee onboarding, HR systems, reporting and broader people operations within Shoprite’s Technology environment.

The opportunity may particularly suit an unemployed graduate with an HR-related Diploma, Advanced Diploma or Degree who wants to gain practical workplace experience in human resources. Importantly, Shoprite states that no prior work experience is required.

Important: this is a YES programme opportunity

The position is advertised as a Youth Employment Service (YES) programme role and the official vacancy lists the employment type as contract. It should therefore not be confused with a permanent Shoprite Group position.

The specific vacancy does not state that successful completion of the programme will result in permanent employment. Applicants should view it primarily as an opportunity to gain practical HR experience and develop workplace skills within a large corporate environment.

At a glance

What this opportunity is

The YES People Apprentice will provide administrative and operational support to Shoprite’s Technology / SRX People Team. The role provides exposure across different areas of the employee and HR lifecycle while allowing the successful candidate to develop practical knowledge of corporate HR processes.

The apprentice will work alongside People Partners and other stakeholders within Shoprite’s broader People function. Exposure will include areas such as talent acquisition, employee engagement, learning and development, HR systems, reporting, people analytics and general HR operations.

Main duties and responsibilities

The successful candidate will assist the Technology / SRX People Team across a wide range of HR activities. Responsibilities include:

• Providing day-to-day talent acquisition and general HR administrative support.
• Assisting with employee records, HR documentation and recruitment administration.
• Helping to schedule and coordinate meetings, workshops, employee engagements and interviews.
• Assisting with CV screening, candidate sorting and shortlisting support.
• Scheduling interviews and communicating with candidates.
• Preparing and sending Microsoft Teams interview invitations.
• Supporting recruitment workflow administration and maintaining candidate progress information.
• Keeping recruitment records and trackers accurate and up to date.
• Assisting with onboarding, induction and store-immersion administration for new employees.
• Supporting learning and development administration.
• Assisting with employee engagement, culture and wellness activities.
• Updating information across HR systems and platforms.
• Supporting data collection, cleansing and reporting activities.
• Assisting with people metrics and dashboards.
• Supporting HR system and process-improvement activities.
• Responding to basic employee and manager queries and escalating matters where required.

Recruitment and candidate administration exposure

A significant part of the opportunity involves exposure to Shoprite’s recruitment and talent-acquisition processes. The apprentice may assist with:

• CV screening and candidate sorting.
• Supporting candidate shortlisting.
• Interview scheduling.
• Candidate communication.
• Microsoft Teams interview invitations.
• Recruitment workflow trackers.
• Vacancy and approval updates.
• Monitoring candidate progress through the recruitment process.
• Maintaining accurate recruitment records for reporting and follow-up.

Background and verification checks

The role will also provide exposure to recruitment verification processes. Duties may include coordinating:

• MIE checks.
• Qualification verification.
• Reference checks.
• Criminal checks.
• Credit checks.
• ID verification.
• Other relevant candidate verification processes.

The apprentice will help capture, track and file verification outcomes and escalate concerns when required.

Onboarding and employee administration

The successful candidate will also gain practical experience in employee onboarding and HR administration. This may include:

• Preparing offer letters and employment contracts.
• Preparing employee take-on packs and supporting documentation.
• Supporting Adobe Sign workflows for contracts, forms and approvals.
• Tracking signed documents.
• Ensuring completed documents are stored in the appropriate folders.
• Checking that new starter packs are complete before payroll submission.
• Supporting the submission of new starter documentation to Payroll.
• Tracking employee-number generation.
• Communicating employee numbers to relevant stakeholders.
• Maintaining new-starter information once contracts have been signed.
• Supporting onboarding communication to new employees and hiring managers.
• Checking the accuracy of start dates, employee numbers and first-day information.

HR technology, systems and reporting exposure

This YES opportunity has a particularly strong technology and data component. The apprentice will gain exposure to HR systems and reporting processes within Shoprite’s Technology environment.

• Update and validate information across HR systems and platforms.
• Support data collection and data-cleansing activities.
• Assist with compiling people metrics and dashboards.
• Support SAP-related HR administration.
• Assist with employee-number checks, position data and employee-status changes.
• Validate HR system information against trackers and employee documentation.
• Support data-accuracy checks across SAP, applicant tracking systems, SharePoint trackers and onboarding records.
• Assist with system-related process improvements and user adoption where applicable.
• Identify opportunities to improve administrative efficiency through technology.

Minimum qualification

Applicants need an HR-related Diploma, Advanced Diploma or Degree.

The vacancy therefore appears particularly relevant to HR graduates seeking their first opportunity to gain practical experience in a large corporate human-resources environment.

No previous work experience required

Shoprite specifically states that no prior work experience is required for this opportunity.

This is an important feature of the vacancy for graduates who have completed an appropriate HR qualification but have not yet had an opportunity to build formal employment experience.

If you have completed internships, vacation work, volunteer activities, university projects or other experience involving administration, recruitment, data, customer service or Microsoft Office, you can still include this on your CV where relevant.

Skills and competencies

Shoprite is looking for an applicant who can demonstrate the following:

• Proficiency in Microsoft Word.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel.
• Proficiency in Microsoft PowerPoint.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Outlook.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Good administrative skills.
• Basic reporting and data-management skills.
• Comfort working with systems and technology.
• Ability to schedule interviews and coordinate candidate communication.
• Ability to track candidate feedback and maintain accurate recruitment updates.

AI prompting is specifically mentioned

An interesting requirement in this vacancy is that Shoprite specifically lists a basic ability or interest in Artificial Intelligence prompting.

Applicants who have used generative AI tools responsibly for research, administration, summarisation, drafting or productivity may therefore want to include relevant AI-related skills on their CV if they genuinely have them. Do not claim AI experience that you cannot demonstrate.

Areas you could gain exposure to

The vacancy provides exposure across several areas of modern human resources. Shoprite specifically mentions an interest in developing across:

• Human resources.
• Talent acquisition and recruitment.
• Employee onboarding.
• Employee engagement.
• People analytics.
• HR reporting.
• HR systems.
• Workforce planning.
• Governance.
• Business partnering.
• Learning and development.
• People operations.

Who may be well suited to this opportunity?

This opportunity may be particularly suitable for a recent HR graduate who enjoys both people-focused work and technology. Much of the role involves accurate administration, recruitment coordination, HR systems, reporting and working with different stakeholders.

An applicant who is organised, comfortable using Microsoft Office, interested in HR technology and willing to learn about recruitment and employee processes may be particularly well aligned with the opportunity.

What applicants should understand before applying

• This is a YES programme opportunity.
• The official vacancy lists the job type as contract.
• The role is based in Brackenfell, Cape Town.
• An HR-related Diploma, Advanced Diploma or Degree is required.
• No previous work experience is required.
• The role provides substantial exposure to recruitment and HR administration.
• There is a strong HR technology, systems and data component.
• Microsoft Office proficiency is required.
• Basic ability or interest in AI prompting is specifically mentioned.
• The specific advertisement does not state the programme duration.
• The official vacancy does not state a salary or stipend amount.
• The advertisement does not promise permanent employment after completion of the programme.

Application checklist

Before starting your application, prepare your information and supporting documents carefully.

• An updated CV.
• Your South African ID details and a copy of your ID if requested.
• Your HR-related Diploma, Advanced Diploma or Degree information.
• Copies of qualifications or academic records if requested during the application process.
• An active cellphone number.
• A professional email address that you check regularly.
• Accurate education and qualification details.
• Information about relevant university projects, internships, volunteer experience or other activities, if applicable.
• Any additional documents requested through Shoprite’s official recruitment portal.

Need help with CVs, certified documents and applications? Visit our Learnership Resources and Guides.

About the Shoprite Group

The Shoprite Group is a major South African retail group with operations across a range of food, grocery and other retail brands. The Group employs a large workforce across its stores, distribution operations, offices and specialist business functions and offers a range of career and youth-development opportunities.

Official website: Visit the official Shoprite Holdings website

Quick tips for applicants

• Apply well before the closing date rather than waiting until 29 August 2026.
• Make your HR qualification easy to identify near the top of your CV.
• Include Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook under your relevant skills if you can use them competently.
• Mention relevant HR, recruitment or administration coursework and projects where appropriate.
• Highlight experience working with data, spreadsheets or reporting if you have it.
• If you have genuine experience using AI tools and prompting, consider including it under your digital skills.
• Check your CV carefully for spelling, formatting and factual errors.
• Use an active cellphone number and professional email address.
• Make sure your application information matches your CV and qualifications.
• Do not exaggerate your experience — the vacancy specifically states that previous work experience is not required.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Applying without the required HR-related qualification.
• Failing to clearly identify your qualification on your CV.
• Assuming you need previous employment experience and deciding not to apply.
• Submitting a generic CV that does not highlight HR, administration, technology and Microsoft Office skills.
• Claiming AI, Excel or other technical skills you cannot actually demonstrate.
• Using an outdated CV with an incorrect cellphone number or email address.
• Leaving required fields incomplete on the online application.
• Uploading unclear or incorrect supporting documents.
• Waiting until the final day to submit your application.
• Applying through unofficial third-party links instead of Shoprite’s official recruitment portal.

Scam warning: important

Applications should be submitted through the official Shoprite recruitment portal linked in this post. Be cautious of individuals or social-media accounts claiming that they can guarantee you a Shoprite position in exchange for payment.

• Do not pay anyone to apply for this opportunity.
• Do not pay a recruitment, placement or interview fee.
• Never provide your banking PIN, password or one-time PIN to someone claiming to be a recruiter.
• Be cautious of unsolicited WhatsApp or social-media messages asking for money or sensitive information.
• Only provide personal documents through a recruitment process you have verified as legitimate.
• Use the official Shoprite recruitment link provided below to access the vacancy.

How this opportunity was verified

This opportunity was checked against the official Shoprite Group eRecruit recruitment portal under reference number SHO260814-5.

The official listing confirms the position title YES: People Apprentice, the HR Technology & People Support focus, contract employment type, Human Resources job category and location in Brackenfell, Cape Town, Western Cape.

The official vacancy also confirms that applicants require an HR-related Diploma, Advanced Diploma or Degree and specifically states that no prior work experience is required. It lists Microsoft Office proficiency, reporting and data-management skills, comfort with technology and a basic ability or interest in AI prompting among the requirements.

The official listing confirms a closing date of 29 August 2026. The specific vacancy does not state a salary or stipend amount or the programme duration, so these details have not been assumed or added to this post.

Learn more about our verification process on the How We Verify Listings page.

How to apply

Applications must be submitted online through the official Shoprite Group eRecruit portal.

1. Open the official Shoprite application page using the Apply Here button below.
2. Read the complete YES: People Apprentice vacancy description.
3. Confirm that you have the required HR-related qualification.
4. Create a candidate profile or sign in to your existing Shoprite recruitment account if required.
5. Complete the required personal, education and contact-information fields.
6. Upload your current CV and any supporting documents requested by the recruitment system.
7. Check that your qualification and contact information are entered correctly.
8. Review the entire application before submitting it.
9. Submit your application before the closing date.
10. Keep any application confirmation or reference information you receive.

Application Closing Date

Closing date: 29 August 2026

Applicants are encouraged to submit their applications by 28 August 2026 or earlier where possible. Applying before the final day can help avoid missing the opportunity because of connectivity problems, document-upload issues or other last-minute technical difficulties.