Chapter 2. Rate and Threshold Changes
2.1 Official Rate of Interest
The “Official Rate of Interest” (ORI) is the rate of interest that is equal to the RSA repurchase rate (Repo rate) plus 100 basis points (1%). The official rate of interest changes from the first day of the month following the month in which the Repo rate change comes into effect, and is defined in section 1(1) of the Income Tax Act as follows:
“official rate of interest” means—
(a) in the case of a debt which is denominated in the currency of the Republic, a rate of interest equal to the South African repurchase rate plus 100 basis points; or
(b) in the case of a debt which is denominated in any other currency, a rate of interest that is the equivalent of the South African repurchase rate applicable in that currency plus 100 basis points:
Provided that where a new repurchase rate or equivalent rate is determined the new rate of interest applies for the purposes of this definition from the first day of the month following the date on which that new repurchase rate or equivalent rate came into operation;
Employers must calculate a ‘low-interest loan’ fringe benefit in respect of any personal loans granted by the employer to employees with either no interest or at an interest rate that is less than the ‘official rate of interest’.
The value of the fringe benefit is the difference “during the year of assessment” between the interest amount calculated at the official rate of interest, and the amount calculated at the employer’s lower interest rate.
Official Rate of Interest – Recent History
FROM TO ORI
01.02.2020 31.03.2020 7,25%
01.04.2020 30.04.2020 6,25%
01.05.2020 31.05.2020 5,25%
01.06.2020 31.07.2020 4,75%
01.08.2020 30.11.2021 4,50%
01.12.2021 31.01.2022 4,75%
01.02.2022 31.03.2022 5,00%
01.04.2022 31.05.2022 5,25%
01.06.2022 31.07.2022 5,75%
01.08.2022 30.09.2022 6,50%
01.10.2022 30.11.2022 7,25%
01.12.2022 31.01.2023 8,00%
01.02.2023 31.03.2023 8,25%
01.04.2023 Next Increase 8,75%
History of the Official Rate of Interest since 1985
Highest ORI Lowest ORI
19,00% on 1 May 1990 6,00% on 1 Aug 2012
19,00% on 1 Dec 1998 4,50% on 1 Aug 2020
If the interest rate is lower than the official rate of interest, Seventh Schedule paragraph 11(4) specifies three types of loans where the ‘Low Interest’ fringe benefit is given a zero value, therefore there no fringe benefit tax for:
1. ‘Casual’ loan: If the total of a “short term” and “irregular” loan is less than R3 000 “at any relevant time”
2. ‘Study’ loan: Paragraph 11(4)(b): Must be granted to assist the employee to study.
3. Residential accommodation loan: To assist the employee to purchase residential accommodation:
[Paragraph 11(4)(c): Rem proxy <= R250,000 and the Market value <= R450,000] (from 1 March 2019). 2.2 BCEA Earnings Threshold In terms of section 6(3) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, the Minister of Employment and Labour issued Government Gazette 48092 on 20 February 2023 to increase the BCEA earnings threshold from R224 080,48 pa to R241 110,59 pa, an annual increase of R17 030,11 (7,6% pa), with effect from 1 March 2023. Important aspects of the application of the BCEA Earnings threshold are discussed below. BCEA - Application of the Earnings Threshold The BCEA earnings threshold governs the sections of the BCEA that regulate the hours of work in various ways. Abbreviated, the notice states that: “… all employees earning in excess of R241 110,59 per annum … [must] be excluded from sections 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17(2) and 18(3) [of the BCEA]”. This means that employees who earn more than the BCEA earnings threshold are not entitled to the automatic protection provided by the following sections of the BCEA: • Section 9 (Ordinary hours of work) • Section 10 (Overtime) • Section 11 (Compressed working week) • Section 12 (Averaging of hours of work) • Section 14 (Meal intervals) • Section 15 (Daily and weekly rest period) • Section 16 (Pay for work on Sundays) • Section 17(2) (Night work) • Section 18(3) (Public holidays not ordinarily worked). In other words, only employees that earn below or equal to the BCEA threshold enjoy the protection of these sections of the BCEA, and for example, must be paid overtime. Employees that earn above the threshold are not entitled to the automatic protection of these sections. Again, a commonly occurring example is that of overtime - employees that work overtime are not automatically entitled to be paid overtime if they earn above the threshold. If the employer so wishes, the provisions of the above sections of the BCEA that are not automatically provided can be included in the employment contract. Note that: 1. Section 18(3) of the BCEA (public holidays that are not ordinarily worked), protects only those employees that earn below the BCEA threshold, whereas section 18(2) (public holidays that are ordinarily worked), protects all employees i.e. the earnings threshold is not applied to section 18(2). 2. Those employees that earned between the previous threshold of R211,596 and R224,080 per year before the earnings threshold was increased to R224,080 per year, were not entitled to the protection listed above, but after the increase they are entitled to the protection, notwithstanding the fact that their contracts might state that they do not qualify. 3. Most of the ‘working time’ provisions of the BCEA do not apply to senior managerial employees even if they earn less than the threshold. A senior managerial employee is “an employee who has the authority to hire, discipline and dismiss employees and to represent the employer internally and externally”. What is ‘BCEA Earnings’? The notice goes on to define ‘Earnings’ to be: "… the regular annual remuneration before deductions, i.e. income tax, pension, medical and similar payments but excluding similar payments (contributions) made by the employer in respect of the employee: Provided that subsistence and transport allowances received, achievement awards and payments for overtime worked shall not be regarded as remuneration for the purpose of this notice.” The BCEA earnings definition is explained by ‘parsing’ (examining its component parts one by one): “… Remuneration …” The notice is issued in terms of section 6(3) of the BCEA, therefore the ‘remuneration’ that is used as the base amount for ‘earnings’ in the definition of “earnings” in the notice, is ‘BCEA remuneration’, defined to be: “… any payment in money or in kind, … made … in return for that person working for any other person, …” BCEA remuneration is a complex subject that is beyond the scope of this Newsflash, but in short, BCEA remuneration does not include: • Allowances • Benefits that are not granted in return for ‘work done’ (in other words, benefits that are granted in return for ‘work done’ are BCEA remuneration). “… before deductions …” This part of the definition specifies what could be termed ‘gross’ remuneration i.e. remuneration before deductions, but the wording starting from “but excluding” is clumsily drafted and easily misinterpreted. It is clear (and obvious) that remuneration must not be reduced by employment taxes (PAYE, SDL and UIF). What is not clear is that the wording following “but excluding” appears to specify that remuneration must also be reduced by employer-paid contributions to medical schemes, retirement funds etc. This is not correct - employer-paid contributions to medical schemes, retirement funds, etc. must be included in BCEA remuneration. The Department of Employment and Labour has confirmed this by providing the PAGSA with their interpretation that states that employer-paid contributions to medical schemes, retirement funds, and similar, are BCEA earnings and the value of the amount contributed must be included. “… subsistence and transport allowances …” As pointed out above, all allowances are excluded by definition from BCEA remuneration. However, to reduce queries and prevent misunderstandings, the notice specifically excludes two commonly used allowances that in tax law have special tax rules, being the subsistence allowance and the travel allowance. “… achievement awards …” Even though they are normally BCEA remuneration, the notice specifically excludes ‘achievement awards’ from BCEA earnings. Achievement awards include: • Bonuses • Commissions • Incentive payments, etc. “… overtime …” Application of the BCEA Earnings Threshold to the BCEA As stated above, only employees earning below the threshold are subject to the provisions of BCEA section 10 that provides the overtime rules. This means that if an employee works overtime and earns – • Below the threshold, then the overtime must be paid by the employer, • Above the threshold, then the overtime may be paid (the employer can choose whether or not to pay). In the past, when calculating the value of an employee’s BCEA earnings, the notice at the time specified that only ‘occasional’ overtime was excluded from BCEA earnings. This was a nonsensical requirement - how does one decide which overtime hours are ‘regular’ and which are ‘occasional’? By its nature, overtime is an irregular payment. The PAGSA submitted comments on this impractical requirement for many years until finally the wording in the notice was changed to what we have now - all overtime payments are excluded from BCEA earnings. Application of the BCEA Earnings Threshold to Other Acts The BCEA earnings threshold is applied in the LRA (Labour Relations Act) and the EEA (Employment Equity Act). Labour Relations Act [sections 198A, 198B, and 198C] Certain categories of employees earning below the earnings threshold are seen as being ‘vulnerable’ and are entitled to additional protection. The vulnerable categories of employees are those in non-standard employment arrangements including fixed term contracts, labour brokers, and part-time employees. Fixed-term contracts: Employees who earn below the threshold and are employed for a period exceeding 3 months, may be regarded as permanently/indefinitely employed if there is no justifiable reason (there are nine reasons) for the limited duration of the contract (section 198B(4) of the LRA). Those earning above the threshold do not enjoy the same protection. Temporary employment services (TES): Employees earning below the threshold may be deemed to be permanent employees of the client of the TES in certain circumstances. For example, if they are placed with the client for a period exceeding 3 months or if they are not merely substituting an employee who is temporarily absent (Section 198A(3)(b) of the LRA). The same does not apply to those earning above the threshold – they remain the employees of the TES. Employment Equity Act An employee who earns above the earnings threshold and who has a dispute under Chapter II of the EEA (unfair discrimination) is not permitted to refer the dispute to the CCMA for arbitration (unless the dispute relates to alleged unfair discrimination on the grounds of sexual harassment, or the parties agree to arbitration) and is obliged to refer the dispute to the Labour Court for adjudication. There are other areas of the LRA and the EEA that take BCEA earnings into account such as ‘monetary claims’ and ‘unfair discrimination disputes’ but these are outside of the scope of this workbook. History of BCEA Earnings Increases BCEA EARNINGS THRESHOLD Effective Annual 1 Mar 2008 R149 736 1 Jul 2011 R172 000 1 Jul 2012 R183 008 1 Jul 2013 R193 805 1 Jul 2014 R205 433 1 Mar 2021 R211 596,30 1 Mar 2022 R224 080,48 1 Mar 2023 R241 110,59 The history of the increases to the BCEA earnings threshold shows a 7-year gap from 2014 until 1 March 2021 during which the threshold was not increased. This was presumably because of the amendments to the Labour Relations Act in 2014 to introduce the concept of ‘deemed employment’ for those employees that fall into a “temporary services” category, and that only apply to employees that earn below the BCEA threshold (discussed in the Labour Relations Act sub-section above). The application in practice of the concept of ‘deemed employment’ is difficult, and my understanding is that the BCEA earnings threshold was not increased annually to keep the number of occurrences of ‘deemed employment’ as low as possible while the challenges to the new requirements wound their way through the courts. Following the ConCourt judgement, the labour authorities felt comfortable enough to increase the threshold. 2.3 Compensation Fund Earnings Threshold The COIDA earnings threshold places a ceiling on the earnings that employers must declare annually to the Fund in the Return of Earnings (ROE). Payrolls calculate the “earnings” per employee up to the earnings threshold and accumulate the ‘capped’ earnings of all employees to assist the employer to complete the ROE annual return. The Fund then calculates the assessment value by multiplying the total earnings reported on the ROE by the employer’s industry rate (or tariff as it is sometimes referred to) and issues an invoice to the employer for payment. The invoiced amount is the expense of injuries and disease insurance for the employer, and income for the Fund. If all goes well, and payment has been made, the process is ended by the Fund making a ‘Letter of Good Standing’ available for the employer to download, which is an electronic process that apparently now works well. ‘Year of Assessment’ Terminology On 3 December 2020, the Minister of Employment and Labour published a regulation in Gazette No. 43959 that specified a revised assessment tariff structure for the year of assessment 1 March 2021 to 28 February 2022. The tariffs will be discussed in the next chapter that deals with the Compensation Fund amendment legislation. This notice clarified by way of an example that the 2021 year of assessment is the year starting 1 March 2020 to 28 February 2021. This is the same naming principle as in the tax world, but unfortunately this clarification was short-lived – it was changed in Gazette No. 44409 a few months later. The Department of Employment and Labour reversed their earlier decision in Gazette No. 44409 on 1 April 2020 (and ‘yes’, this was April Fool’s day but this is no joke …) and stated that the year in which the starting month falls, indicates the year of assessment. For example: the 2022 assessment year is the year starting 1st March 2022 and ending 28th February 2023. Those of us in the tax world who are used to the naming principle that the year of assessment is indicated by the year in which the ending month falls, will simply have to remember that the labour terminology is different. Best practice is to specify the start and end month of the year, then there is no possibility of a misunderstanding. Earnings threshold Increase for 2022/20233 and for 2023/2024 The Director-General of Employment and Labour issued Government Gazette Number 48065 on 17 February 2023 to announce that the period during which employers must submit the annual Return of Earnings for Actual earnings for 2022/2023, and Provisional earnings for 2023/2024, is 1 April 2023 to 31 May 2023. A second Gazette with the same number (48065) and the same date of issue (17 February 2023) specified the two earnings thresholds for the two years of assessment as follow: 1. R 529 264 for 1 March 2022 to 28 February 2023 2. R 563 520 for 1 March 2023 to 28 February 2024. The concept of ‘Earnings’ for the purpose of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COID Act) is discussed in the next chapter of this workbook. 2.4 Unemployment Insurance Limits Background to the Recent UIF Limit Change The calculation of the UIF TERS benefit during the recent Covid-19 lockdown periods underlined the importance of the UIF benefit limit when calculating UIF benefits. Remuneration above the benefit limit is ignored, and the result is that the benefit value is ‘capped’. The 2021 Budget announced (correctly) that the remuneration limit for contributions will increase from R14 872 pm to R17 711,58 pm, and (incorrectly) that the effective date of this increase is 1 March 2021.   There were three problems with this announcement: 1. Never before has there been cents in the limit amount 2. The benefit limit is R17 712 – why does the contribution limit differ by a few cents? 3. The Minister cannot change the contribution limit with immediate effect by announcement in the budget – it requires a notice in a Gazette in terms of Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act section 6(2). The upshot of a frantic few days of discussions between the PAGSA, SARS, and National Treasury is that the 1 March 2021 effective date announcement in the Budget was scrapped, and the proposed increase to the UIF contribution limit was issued for public comment. Following the public comment period, Gazette No. 44641 was issued on 28 May 2021, and increased the monthly UIF contribution limit to R17 712 with effect from 1 June 2021. The effective date was only a few days after the publication of the notice, leaving payrolls very little time to implement the increase for June. The monthly contribution limit is now aligned with the monthly benefit limit that is used by the Fund to calculate all benefits (including the TERS and the latest TFRS benefit) based on monthly remuneration limited to R17 712. Comments on the UIF Contribution Increase The 2020 Covid lockdown and TERS period, followed by the July 2021 civil unrest riots, hit the Fund financially very hard from three sides: 1. The TERS benefit payments (approximately R60 billion by February 2021) 2. A spike in unemployment benefits as a result of a massive increase in retrenchments 3. A reduction in the inflow of UIF contributions - remuneration either disappeared (unemployment) or was reduced by agreement to keep companies afloat. An increase to the contributions limit will result in larger contribution amounts that will over time help the Fund to get back onto solid financial ground. Prior to the Covid-19 problems and the recent civil unrest, the Fund – fortunately for South Africa – had a healthy surplus. We need the Fund to reach this position again – who knows when it will have to weather the next storm. Chapter 3 of Budget 2023 expects the various social security Funds (including UIF) to return to a surplus position by 2025/2026, and states as follows: “Social security funds ran cash deficits of R46.7 billion in 2020/21 due to the higher spending by the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) in response to COVID-19. Social security funds are projected to run cash deficits until 2024/25 mainly driven by the UIF and Road Accident Fund. The social security funds are expected to return to a surplus position by 2025/26.” Latest UIF Monthly Limits Since 1 June 2021, the UIF limit for both contributions and benefits is unchanged – R17 712 per month. 2.5 Increases to the National Minimum Wage Rates Background The National Minimum Wage Act (NMW Act) was promulgated on 12 Dec 2018 and made effective on 1 January 2019 - leaving payrolls less than 3 weeks in which to implement. The NMW Act establishes the National Minimum Wage Commission and tasks it with the duty to every year investigate and review the impact of the national minimum wage rate on the South African economy. After evaluating the impact of the national minimum wage against a list of seven economic factors, of which unemployment is arguably the most important, the Commission must then recommend increases (or decreases, or no change) to the national minimum wage rates specified in Schedules 1 and 2 of the NMW Act to Government. Legislation Background to the NMW Increases NMW Act Section 4(2) Any minimum wage rate that is not reviewed regularly would soon fall behind inflation and cease to be relevant. Section 4(2) of the NMW Act provides that the rates can be changed on an annual basis, and sections 6 to 14 establish the National Minimum Wage Commission and assign to it responsibilities and duties. NMW Act Section 9 Section 9 sets out the composition of the Commission, as follows: 1. A chairperson appointed by the Minister 2. three members nominated by organised business 3. three members nominated by organised community 4. three members nominated by organised labour, and 5. three independent experts, who are knowledgeable about the labour market and conditions of employment, appointed by the Minister. NMW Act Section 6 Section 6 puts a duty on the Commission to review the national minimum wage annually and make recommendations to the Minister on any adjustment (i.e. an increase, no change, or a decrease) of the wage rate. NMW Act Section 7 For the purpose of the annual review, the Commission must in general promote: 1. the medium-term targets referred to in section 11(d) (to set medium-term targets for the minimum wage) 2. the alleviation of poverty, and 3. the reduction of wage differentials and inequality. When considering changes to the rates, the Commission must consider the following economic factors: 1. inflation, the cost of living and the need to retain the value of the minimum wage 2. wage levels and collective bargaining outcomes 3. gross domestic product 4. productivity 5. ability of employers to carry on their businesses successfully 6. the operation of small, medium or micro-enterprises and new enterprises 7. the likely impact of the recommended adjustment on employment or the creation of employment, and 8. any other relevant factor. National Minimum Wage Rates – Increases In a welcome acknowledgement of the economic role that payrolls play, in 2021 the National Minimum Wage Commission aligned the effective date of changes to the minimum wage rates with the start of the tax year. Government Gazette No. 48094 issued on 21 February 2023 increased the National Minimum Wage rates that are specified in Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 of the National Minimum Wage Act with effect from 1 March 2023. National Minimum Wage Hourly rates for the Four categories of workers other than Learners NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE Rate/hr Rate/hr Rate/hr Rate/hr Rate/hr Worker Categories 1-Jan-19 1-Mar-20 1-Mar-21 1-Mar-22 1-Mar-23 General workers 20.00 20.76 (3,8%) 21.69 (4,5% 23.19 (6,9%) 25,42 (9,6%) Farm workers 18.00 18.68 (3,8%) 21.69 (16,1%) 23.19 (6,9%) 25,42 (9,6%) Domestic workers 15.00 15.57 (3,8%) 19.09 (22,6%) 23.19 (21,5%) 25,42 (9,6%) Public Works workers 11.00 11.42 (3,8% 11.93 (4,5%) 12.75 (6,9%) 13,97 (9,6%) Note: 1. In terms of section 4(3), the minimum wage rate in respect of workers in the extended public works program must be increased by the same percentage as for general workers. 2. The Minister decided on an across-the-board increase of 9,6% resulting in a minimum R25,42 per hour. 3. This is pretty stiff - for the year to January, the national inflation rate was 6,9% (and Budget 2023 anticipates inflation increases at 4,9% for the year ahead). 4. R25,42 per hour equates to R203,36 per day, R1 016,80 per week, and R4 406,13 per month on average. In a recent announcement in February 2023, the Minister stated that farm workers and domestic workers: “… are generally unorganized and vulnerable, and without the introduction of the National Minimum Wage Act, they would have continued to endure exceedingly low wage levels and poverty. This significant increase [9,6%] will benefit 892 000 domestic workers who are overwhelmingly women, and 800 000 farmworkers.” Weekly Minimum Wage rates for Learners in terms of Section 17 of the Skills Development Act LEARNERS Credits Min Min Min Min Min Already Wage Wage Wage Wage Wage NQF Levels Earned 1-Jan-19 1-Mar-20 1-Mar-21 1-Mar-22 1-Mar-23 Level 1 to 2 0 to 120 301.01 312.45 326.51 349.04 382.55 121 to 240 601.99 624.87 652.99 698.05 765.06 Level 3 0 to 120 301.01 312.45 326.51 349.04 382.55 121 to 240 566.93 588.47 614.95 657.38 720.49 241 to 360 928.11 963.38 1 006.73 1076.19 1 179.50 Level 4 0 to 120 301.01 312.45 326.51 349.04 382.55 121 to 240 602.05 624.93 653.05 698.11 720.49 241 to 360 928.11 963.38 1 006.73 1 076.19 1,179.50 361 to 480 1 354.51 1 405.98 1 469.25 1 570.63 1,721.41 Level 5 to 8 0 to 120 301.01 312.45 326.51 349.04 382.55 121 to 240 652.15 676.93 707.39 756.20 828.80 241 to 360 975.75 1 012.83 1 058.41 1 131.44 1,240.06 361 to 480 1 374.61 1 426.85 1 491.06 1 593.94 1,746.96 481 to 600 1 755.84 1 822.56 1 904.58 2 036.00 2,231.46 Increase Percentage Rate 3,8% 4,5% 6,9% 9,6% All categories of learners have been granted a 9,6% increase effective from 1 March 2023 (the previous increase was 3,8% from 1 March 2020, 4,5% from 1 March 2021, and 6,9% from 1 March 2022). Increases to Sectoral Determinations The increase to the NMW rate affects sectoral determination wage rates set that are higher than the NMW. These higher wage rates must be increased by the same increase percentage as that for general workers and are specified in Gazette 48094 for: 1. Sectoral Determination 1: Contract Cleaning Sector 2. Sectoral Determination 9: Wholesale and Retail Sector. The detail of the job levels and minimum wage rates can be found in the Gazette. National Minimum Wage Act - Important Definitions Definition of ‘Worker’ in the National Minimum Wage Act The BCEA defines an employee to be: “any person, excluding an independent contractor, who works for another person … and who receives, … remuneration” To prevent employers from falsely classifying employees as independent contractors and paying them less than the NMW rate, the NMW Act was amended at a late stage of its creation to define a “worker” by removing the exclusion of independent contractors from the BCEA definition of an employee: “any person who works for another and who receives, … any payment for that work whether in money or in kind. This means that if the above definition is satisfied, it is possible that while they are not BCEA employees, common law independent contractors can be workers in terms of the NMW Act definition and they must then be paid at least the national minimum wage rate. Definition of ‘Wage’ in the National Minimum Wage Act “Wage” is a subset of ‘remuneration’ (‘wage’ is always ‘remuneration’ but amounts that are ‘remuneration’ are not always ‘wage’), and is defined in the BCEA as follows: “wage” means the amount of money paid … to an employee in respect of ordinary hours of work or, …”. The NMW Act definition is identical to the BCEA definition except that the term “employee” has been replaced by that of “worker”, as follows: “wage’’ means the amount of money paid … to a worker in respect of ordinary hours of work or, …”. ‘Money’ means ‘cash’, therefore employer-paid contributions and benefits are not ‘wage’. Any payment that is not made in respect of “ordinary hours of work” such as lump sum payments, allowances, premium payments such as overtime or shift premiums, as well as incentive payments such as bonuses or commissions, is not ‘wage’ as defined, and must not be included when checking the employee’s wage rate per hour against the national minimum wage rate per hour. *** PAGSA members can refer to Newsflash 2022-06 2.6 History of UIF, BCEA and COIDA Earnings Thresholds Table: Summary of the changes to the thresholds for UIF, the BCEA, the Compensation Fund, and the NMW Rates UIF LIMIT FOR CONTRIBUTIONS UIF LIMIT FOR BENEFITS BCEA EARNINGS THRESHOLD COIDA EARNINGS THRESHOLD NMW ACT GENERAL WORKERS Effective Monthly Effective Monthly Effective Annual Effective Annual Effective Per Hour 1 Apr 2002 R8 099 1 Apr 2002 R8 099 1 Mar 2008 R149 736 1 Apr 2017 R403 500 1 Apr 2003 R8 836 1 Apr 2003 R8 836 1 Jul 2011 R172 000 1 Mar 2018 R430 944 1 Oct 2005 R10 996 1 Oct 2005 R10 996 1 Jul 2012 R183 008 1 Mar 2019 R458 520 1 Mar 2019 R20,00 1 Jul 2006 R11 662 1 Jul 2006 R11 662 1 Jul 2013 R193 805 1 Mar 2020 R484 200 1 Mar 2020 R20,76 1 Feb 2008 R12 478 1 Feb 2008 R12 478 1 Jul 2014 R205 433 1 Mar 2021 R506 473 1 Mar 2021 R21,69 1 Oct 2012 R14 872 1 Oct 2012 R14 872 1 Mar 2021 R211 596,30 1 Mar 2022 R529 264 1 Mar 2022 R23,19 1 Jun 2021 R17 712 1 Apr 2017 R17 712 1 Mar 2022 R224 080,48 1 Mar 2023 R563 520 1 Mar 2023 R25,42 Note that only the history of the National Minimum Wage Rate for ‘General workers’ is recorded in the above table, but that from 1 March 2022 the rate of R23,19 also applies to Farm workers and to Domestic workers. This same principle also applies to years after 2022. Due to lack of space, the hourly minimum wage rate for Public Works Program workers and the weekly minimum wage rates for Learners are not recorded in the above history table. See the ‘Increases to the National Minimum Wage Rates’ section above for more details.