Proposed Pay for Domestic Workers in 2026, if Approved by the Department of Employment and Labour
- South African domestic workers are scheduled for a minimum wage increase in 2026, pushing the legal hourly rate above R30
- The impending hike follows a recommendation from the National Minimum Wage Commission, linking the pay rise to the forecasted rate of inflation
- The current data shows that many workers in the sector are still earning wages significantly lower than the legally required minimum
- Briefly News spoke with Ausie Malebo about the government's plan to raise the domestic worker minimum wage to R29.95
Source: Getty Images
South African households may soon face a notable increase in the legal minimum salary required to pay their domestic workers.
This change follows a proposal from the National Minimum Wage Commission and is set to take effect on March 1, 2026, if approved by the Department of Employment and Labour, impacting employee contracts across the country.
The proposed adjustment is based on a calculation using the expected Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus an additional 1.5%. A published report by BusinessTech states that experts estimate this formula will lead to a total increase of about 5%, meaning the hourly rate will jump from R28.79 to roughly R30.23. For an employee working 160 hours monthly, this translates to a new minimum salary of approximately R4,840, a change of about R240 that employers must accommodate.
Source: Getty Images
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Domestic worker discusses the R29.95 hourly rate
The team spoke with Ausie Malebo to discuss the Department of Labour’s approval and how a set wage helps workers plan for the future.
We asked Malebo if she thinks the increase will be enough to help with her daily costs. She responded:
“It is good to see that our rights as domestic workers are also taken seriously. The increase sounds good, but we hope that the price of food does not rise even faster than our pay.”
The team asked if knowing the wage for the coming year makes her feel more secure in her job, and the domestic worker said:
“It gives me a bit of peace of mind. It is helpful to know what the law says our salary should be. It makes it easier to have an honest talk with our employers about our value.”
When asked what her biggest hope is for the domestic work industry in the coming years. She shared:
“I hope for more money, of course! Jokes aside, I hope for better benefits and more respect. We work very hard in people’s homes and sometimes have to leave our houses to live in theirs. We just want to know that our future is safe.”
The legal amount is not the actual amount
Despite the government's efforts to safeguard low-income workers through minimum wage laws, official figures paint a worrying picture. Data collected by Stats SA indicates that the average salary for domestic workers stands at R2,350 per month, which remains nearly 50% below the current required minimum salary of R4,606.
5 Briefly News domestic workers-related articles
- A content creator and stay-at-home mom shared insights into maintaining a positive relationship with her household employee.
- A homeowner sought public advice after struggling to find and keep reliable helpers despite offering R7.2K salary and other generous benefits.
- A woman detailed how her helper took her car without permission, got into an accident, and injured her child, who was in the car with her.
- A South African woman travelled to Zimbabwe to visit her domestic helper’s family, sharing a heartwarming video of her struggle to learn the Shona language.
- A nanny shared a video teaching her boss's toddler how to eat chicken feet, warming the hearts of many social media users.
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Proofreading by Kelly Lippke, copy editor at Briefly.co.za.
Source: Briefly News
