The Employment Tax Incentive (ETI), introduced in 2014, provides wage subsidies to employers hiring workers aged 18-29 earning below R6,500/month. Treasury estimates the ETI supports approximately 700,000 jobs annually at a fiscal cost of ~R6bn. Parliamentary review has examined deadweight losses and proposals to expand eligibility beyond the current age and wage thresholds. With youth unemployment above 60%, the committee has debated whether a more generous or broader ETI could meaningfully shift the employment curve.
Productivity SA provides turnaround assistance to distressed companies, offering an alternative to retrenchment through workplace restructuring and competitiveness improvement. The entity operates on a modest budget (~R200m) relative to its potential impact. The committee has reviewed Productivity SA quarterly performance alongside CCMA and NEDLAC, noting that early intervention in struggling firms prevents the need for section 189 retrenchment processes. The 2025 BRRR recommended increased allocation to scale turnaround support, particularly for labour-intensive sectors facing structural transition.
South Africa has 8 million unemployed and an additional 4 million discouraged work-seekers — the highest unemployment rate among major economies. Active labour market programmes combining skills training, work experience, and placement services have been debated as an alternative to passive social transfers. The committee held dedicated workshops in 2025 on activation strategies, examining models from Brazil and India. The Presidential Youth Employment Intervention and Social Employment Fund represent existing activation efforts, but scale remains inadequate.
The CCMA handles over 200,000 dispute cases annually but faces chronic under-resourcing, with commissioner vacancy rates above 20% in some regions. The committee has tracked rising caseloads, noting that conciliation settlement rates have declined from historic highs. Digitisation of case management and virtual hearings — accelerated during COVID — offer efficiency gains but require sustained investment. The 2025/26 BRRR recommended increased CCMA funding and faster commissioner appointments to reduce average case resolution times from the current 30+ days.
NEDLAC, the tripartite social dialogue institution, brings government, business, labour, and community constituencies together to negotiate structural reform. The committee has monitored NEDLAC performance quarterly, noting both successes (minimum wage negotiations) and failures (stalled labour law amendments). A binding social compact on growth — modelled on the Irish social partnership model — would require wage moderation commitments from labour, investment commitments from business, and reform delivery from government.
The National Minimum Wage, set at R27.58 per hour in 2024, is reviewed annually by the National Minimum Wage Commission. Parliamentary hearings have examined whether the NMW has reduced in-work poverty or depressed employment in vulnerable sectors — agriculture and domestic work have lower sectoral rates. With strict unemployment at 31.9% (Q4 2024), the tension between adequate wages and employment absorption remains central. The committee has questioned the adequacy of the annual CPI-plus adjustment formula and whether it accounts for productivity differentials across sectors.
South Africa has approximately 3 million informal economy workers — street traders, waste pickers, domestic workers, and platform gig workers — most of whom lack basic labour protections, UIF coverage, or occupational health insurance. The committee has examined the gap between formal labour law and the reality of informally employed South Africans, including hearings on elder care, farm worker conditions, and CEDAW compliance. Platform work (e-hailing, delivery) has grown rapidly without clear regulatory coverage. Extending basic social security and dispute resolution to these workers is a recognised gap.
Sections 189 and 189A of the Labour Relations Act govern large-scale retrenchments, requiring 60-day consultation periods and social plans for employers with 50+ employees. The committee held workshops in November 2025 examining whether current protections are adequate following major job losses in manufacturing and mining. Organised labour argues consultation periods are performative; business argues the process is too rigid for firms in genuine financial distress. Proposed amendments would strengthen mandatory social plan requirements while streamlining timelines for companies in business rescue.
The Compensation Fund, which covers occupational injuries and diseases, has a claims backlog exceeding 100,000 cases and IT systems dating from the 1990s. The Auditor-General has issued consecutive adverse audit opinions. Employer non-compliance with registration and contributions compounds the backlog. Parliamentary oversight has documented systemic processing failures and the impact on injured workers who wait years for compensation. The committee has called for a comprehensive turnaround strategy including migration to modern digital claims management.
The Unemployment Insurance Fund holds assets exceeding R200bn but has faced governance failures, investment losses, and processing delays. The committee has scrutinised quarterly performance, including the gap between contribution income and benefit payouts during mass retrenchment events. COVID-era TERS payments exposed systemic weaknesses in claims processing and fraud prevention. The fund is structurally sound financially but operationally dysfunctional — reforms focus on IT modernisation, claims automation, and investment governance aligned with the PIC Act.