Image Source: Inside Small Business
Local – From the 1st of March 2026, the National Minimum Wage will rise from R28.79 to R30.23 per hour. The R1.44 increase will benefit all workers, including farm workers and domestic workers.
Employment and Labour Minister Nomakhosazana Meth announced the new rates earlier this week, confirming the wage adjustment that will affect millions of workers across the country.
“The 1st of March 2026 is the date on which this amendment shall become binding,” Meth said.
Annual Review and Enforcement
The increase forms part of the annual review mandated by the National Minimum Wage Act, which came into effect in 2019.
Employers are legally required to pay workers a minimum hourly rate, with violations subject to fines enforced by the Department of Employment and Labour’s inspectorate and the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA).
“The NMW is the floor which an employer is legally obligated to remunerate employees for work done. No employee shall be paid below the National Minimum Wage. It cannot be varied by contract, collective agreement or law,” the department said in a statement.
Not all workers will receive the standard rate adjustment. Workers employed under the Expanded Public Works Programme will see their minimum wage increase from R15.16 to R16.62 per hour.
Workers who have concluded learnership agreements under the Skills Development Act will be entitled to allowances detailed in Schedule 2, with rates to be published on the departmental website.
Exemptions and Exclusions
The Act applies to most workers and employers but excludes members of the South African National Defence Force, the National Intelligence Agency, and the South African Secret Service.
“It does not apply to a volunteer, who is a person who performs work for another person and who does not receive or is not entitled to receive any remuneration for his or her service,” the statement clarified.
The minimum wage does not include allowances for transport, tools, food, or accommodation, nor does it cover payments in kind, tips, bonuses, or gifts.
