National minimum wage

At the time of the Road Shows the implementation of the new National Minimum Wage Bill was scheduled to be effective as of 1 May 2018. Since then however, the Minister of Labour, Mildred Oliphant, has announced that the National Minimum Wage Bill, together with the Labour Relations Amendment Bill and the Basic Conditions of Employment Amendments Bill will not be ready for implementation as planned. These bills are still going through the parliamentary process and will require further work before they are finalised and adopted. As Sandy told members during the meetings, and once again appeals to members in this newsletter, that even though the implementation date is unknown it does not appear that the date will be delayed for too long a period. Sandy encourages members to prepare for the implementation of the increase, with a focus on the (R) value of the wage, hours, terms and conditions etc. The intention remains to have a National Minimum Wage Bill set at R20 per hour with agriculture having a phased approach starting at R18 per hour.