Newsflash! New Earnings Threshold Announced
The Minister of Employment and Labour has officially announced the new earnings threshold as per Section 6(3) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act No. 75 of 1997. The determination, published in Government Gazette No. 52232 on March 7, 2025, sets the new annual earnings threshold at R261,748.45 (two hundred and sixty-one thousand, and seven hundred and forty-eight rand, forty-five cents). This translates to a salary of R21 812.38 a month.
Effective from April 1, 2025, employees earning above this threshold will be excluded from certain protections outlined in the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA). Specifically, this exclusion applies to the following sections of the Act:
- Section 9: Ordinary hours of work
- Section 10: Overtime
- Section 11: Compressed working week
- Section 12: Averaging of working hours
- Section 14: Meal intervals
- Section 15: Rest periods
- Section 16: Sunday work
- Section 17(2): Night work
- Section 18(3): Public holidays
For the purpose of this determination, “earnings” refers to the regular annual remuneration before any deductions, including income tax, pension contributions, medical aid contributions, and similar payments. However, it explicitly excludes:
- Subsistence allowances
- Transport allowance
- Achievement awards
- Payments for overtime worked
This adjustment of the earnings threshold is a key factor for employers to consider, as it affects which employees are entitled to the full protections of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act.
Please click here to view the official government communication
