EMPLOYMENT and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi says indications reveal there is a high compliance rate by employers in implementing the recently introduced National Minimum Wage.

Nxesi said this when he briefed media ahead of tabling the department’s budget vote speech in the Old Assembly Chamber on Wednesday.

“There was a considerable debate – and opposition – around the recently introduced National Minimum Wage, which was initially set at R20 per hour. This is not enough to lift people out of poverty entirely, but is a good start and indications are that some six million workers will benefit. Inspections, to date, indicate a high compliance rate, with only 7 per cent of employers failing to pay the prescribed rate,” he said.

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The National Minimum Wage, which prescribes a minimum wage of R20 per hour, or R3 500 per month, came into effect on 1 January 2019.

While the department’s director-general Thobile Lamati indicated that the non-compliance by employers cuts across all sectors, he said in cases where inspectors have issued non-compliance notices, these will be referred to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.

Nxesi said the department will meet with non-complying employers to understand their difficulty in implementing the minimum wage and if it is found that they can’t afford to do so, they will be allowed to apply for some form of exemption.

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