Mitigation of job losses is a shared responsibility, says Cyril Ramaphosa
The mitigation of job losses that may result from the introduction of the national minimum wage is the collective responsibility of government, business and labour, President Cyril Ramaphosa says. The National Assembly approved the National Minimum Wage Bill in May. The South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu), the country’s second-largest labour federation, said the proposed minimum pay of R20 an hour, or R3,500 a month, would entrench "the apartheid wage structure". The federation suggested a living wage was R12,500 a month. The minimum wage proposal will be reviewed yearly, except for domestic and farm workers, whose rate will be set at R15 and R18 an hour, respectively. However, there are fears that the introduction of a minimum wage could lead to wholesale job losses. DA leader Mmusi Maimane asked Ramaphosa in a written question in Parliament what steps the government would take to mitigate the estimated 715,000 job losses that would ensue as a result of the introductio...
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