“This Is Wrong”: Woman Reveals Assistant Store Manager Salary Breakdown As Mzansi Reacts

• A TikTok clip highlights what assistant store managers are reportedly earning
• Mzansi pushes back on the figures, with users sharing their own pay slips and workplace experiences online
• New salary snapshot points to high-demand roles still dominating the top pay brackets in the job market

A woman has revealed how much an assistant store manager with five years of experience earns, causing discussions over retail salaries. Mzansi weighed in after seeing the amount.

The TikTok video shared by @liferesetwithboni on 15 June 2026 compared South Africa’s average salary with the earnings of an assistant store manager. According to the payslip shown in the clip, the employee's net salary amounted to R8,936.82.

"The average salary in South Africa is 10,000 rands...Okay, this is a payslip of an assistant store manager with 5 years of work experience...Deductions R323 and a net pay of 8000 rands."

Top-paying jobs show demand for senior roles

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A Pnet salary snapshot for 2026 shows that executive and director-level jobs pay the most, with monthly packages ranging from about R83,000 to R125,000. Other high earners include plant managers, financial managers, consulting engineers, and marketing managers, mostly earning between R35,000 and R77,500 per month depending on experience and role.

Engineering, finance, IT, and construction roles dominate the list of well-paying jobs. Positions like IT managers, civil and electrical engineers, solutions architects, and quantity surveyors all feature strong salary ranges, showing that skilled technical and leadership roles continue to attract higher pay in the South African job market.

View the TikTok video below:

Mzansi weighs in on the amount

Viewers took to the comments to share their thoughts and question the figures. This is what Mzansi had to say on her page:

Sibusiso SV Vilakazi said:

"My salary is 18k+ and I'm a department manager. No, this is wrong which retail store is this?"

modie wrote:

"I'm not even a supervisor at retail but I make 16k plus commission."

Thabiso M commented:

"Anything less than 8k is a stipend, not a salary."

untu_wright wrote:

"People are so scared of job hopping! With that experience as an assistant manager, you could make a lot of money."

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ZiziDlam🎀 stated:

"The Green pharm store earns way more than that 38k to be exact. I have worked retail for 10 years I'm an Assistant Manager and my take home is different each month but I can easily take home R21-23K."

ZiziDlam🎀 added:

"The Green pharm store earns way more than that 38k to be exact."

More Briefly News stories on salaries

• An IOL report claims that the cost of a decent standard of living in South Africa could now be around R20,000 per month, highlighting rising living expenses.
• South Africans have reacted with mixed feelings to reports on proposed 2026 teacher salary adjustments, with some questioning the accuracy and fairness of the claims.
• A salary breakdown shared by a man working in the Western Cape sparked disbelief online after he claimed his earnings were “peanuts” despite public expectations of high pay.

Source: Briefly News