National minimum wage increase effective 1 March 2023

Employment and labour minister Thulas Nxesi announced that the national minimum wage for each ordinary hour worked will increase from R21.69 to R23.19.

The National Minimum Wage Act was first proclaimed in 2018, setting a historic precedent in the protection of low-earning (vulnerable) workers in South Africa and provided a platform for reducing inequality and huge disparities in income in the national labour market. The national minimum wage was first implemented on 1 January 2019 at a level of R20 per hour. In terms of the law, it is an unfair labour practice for an employer to unilaterally alter hours of work or other conditions of employment in implementing the national minimum wage.

With effect from 1 March 2023, employers shall pay contract cleaning workers at least the minimum hourly wage as detailed in the schedule below:

Area A - ZAR 27.97 per hour

Metropolitan Councils: City of Cape Town, Greater East Rand Metro, City of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Nelson Mandela

Local Councils:

Emfuleni, Merafong, Mogale City, Metsimaholo, Randfontein, Stellenbosch, Westonaria

Area B - ZAR27.50 per hour

All areas in KwaZulu-Natal NB: Conditions of employment for KwaZulu-Natal areas shall be subject to the agreement concluded in the Bargaining Council for the Contract Cleaning Service Industry KwaZulu-Natal (BCCCI)

Area C - ZAR25.50 per hour

In the rest of South Africa

Employment law service Labourwise reminds employers that the national minimum wage excludes allowances that are paid to enable employees to work (such as transport and equipment), or payment in kind (such as board or accommodation), as well as bonuses, tips or food.