The national minimum wage (NMW) will increase to R28.79 per hour from 1^st March 2025. This is a 4.4% increase from the current minimum wage of R27.58 per hour, or around 1.4% above the current inflation rate. 

NMW for 2025 was announced by the Minister of Employment & Labour, Nomakhosazana Meth, and published in the Government Gazette number 11792 on 4^th February 2025.

The NMW applies to all workers in South Africa, including farm and forestry workers and domestic workers.

The only exceptions to this NMW are workers employed in expanded public works programmes like Working for Water and Working on Fire, who are entitled to a minimum wage of R15.83 per hour from 1^st March 2025. Learnership allowances have also increased.

The NMW for 2025 translates into R230.32 per 8-hour day or R1,151.60 for a 40-hour week.

FSA slams DFFE on state forests

Commented Forestry South Africa's Michael Peter: "FSA welcomes the inflation-related increase in the NMW, which considers the extremely difficult trading conditions facing the forestry Industry while also seeking to protect the livelihoods of the 145 000 workers in forestry.

"Despite this reasonable increase, current and potential forestry jobs remain in great jeopardy because of the failures of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) to partner with the private sector to recapitalise degraded state forests, to accelerate new afforestation and to protect the plantation growing stock of the country. All of these factors threaten existing jobs in forestry, making growth in employment in the sector impossible.

"FSA remains committed to working with the state and other partners to overcome these obstacles created by the DFFE, as doing so will protect and increase employment, secure new fibre to underpin the many multi-billion investments already made and sustain the forestry industry in South Africa."

Sawmillers under pressure

Executive Director of Sawmilling SA, Roy Southey, said that the sawmilling industry has had an exceptionally tough 2024, and several mills closed during the year. "To have a 4.4% increase in the minimum wage adds considerable expense for sawmilling businesses, so we do not welcome the increase. But it could have been worse," said Roy.

He said the high cost of logs, load shedding, falling demand for sawn lumber, and no price movement contributed to sawmillers' woes in 2024. Mills that closed during the year include Stevens Lumber Mill in Limpopo and Merensky's Singisi mill, while others downscaled their operations to make ends meet.

Efforts to gain access to the Australian South African structural timber market also came to nought as their industry went into a severe slump in 2024.

Roy said the good news is that sawmilling prospects for 2025 are looking a bit brighter as business has started picking up.

Agri-SA CEO Johann Kotze commented that the increase "reflects the complex economic landscape currently faced by the agricultural sector in SA" and that the NMW Commission has strived to "take a balanced approach" in its decision-making process.

Meanwhile, the trade union federation Cosatu welcomed the "progressive increase" in the NMW for 2025.

The National Minimum Wage Act allows employers or employer organisations to apply to the Department of Employment and Labour for exemption from the NMW if they can prove that the minimum wage is unaffordable. This loophole provides a small window of opportunity for under-pressured employers to get authorisation to pay lower wages. Still, it is likely to be an administrative-heavy process.