- The national minimum wage is R20 per hour. This applies to all workers in South Africa, except for domestic workers and farm workers who have their own sectoral determinations.
- The minimum wage was increased from R15 per hour to R20 per hour on 1 January 2019.
What are national minimum wages?
The national minimum wage is the minimum amount of money that employers must pay to workers. The government sets this minimum wage, and the amount varies from one country to another. In South Africa, for example, the current national minimum wage is R20 per hour.
What are the conditions of a national minimum wage?
The National Minimum Wage Act is applicable to all employees and applies to the following sectors:
- Manufacturing, mining and quarrying;
- Agriculture;
- Construction;
- Domestic workers (excluding live-in domestic workers).
What industries are exempt from a minimum wage?
The following industries are exempt from a minimum wage:
- Agriculture, domestic work and voluntary work.
- Employees who receive more than the statutory minimum wage.
How can you negotiate your salary?
You’re a valuable employee, and you should know what your skills are worth. It’s important to have a sense of the market rate for your job. Having this information will help you negotiate your own salary during the hiring process, as well as during annual reviews.
If you’re looking for a new job, it’s helpful to research average salaries on sites like Payscale or Glassdoor to get an idea of what industries pay in different parts of the country. This can help inform negotiations while also giving employers an idea of what their competitors pay.
It’s also important to know that asking for more money is not inappropriate! In fact, most jobs fall into one of two categories: those with high competition (such as marketing or sales roles) and those without much competition (like administrative assistants). In these cases, there may be less risk involved when asking for more money because fewer people are competing for those positions compared with other roles where there are many candidates vying for each job opening.
There is a set minimum wage in South Africa.
There is a set minimum wage in South Africa. It’s R20 per hour, which you’ll see on your pay slip. This means that all workers must be paid at least R20 per hour (Gross).
This includes:
- The semi-skilled and unskilled workers work in the manufacturing industry as well as those who work in the retail sector.
- Employees who work in different sectors of the economy such as mining, agriculture and construction etc., but exclude managers, professional, and technical staff
