Highlighted as a big relief for public-sector workers, on 12 September 2025, the South African government approved higher salaries that will apply from 1 October 2025. In support, they help give some relief to the workers amidst an increase in living costs and acknowledge the services rendered:
The pay varies with the level, experience, and grade-profile of each individual, ranging roughly around 7%-12% across various bands. Departments are to furnish an updated individual pay schedule of affected employees by 30 October 2025.
Who Is Affected and What Roles Are Included
The salary increase affects workers across the spectrum of public service. Nurses, school teachers, and hospital staff will see their wages realigned. Police officers, emergency responders, support staff, administrative clerks, revenue agents, and engineering or infrastructure personnel also lie within their pay. Essentially, it is aimed at both front-line and support personnel.
Some of the published scale sample roles are: Entry-Level Clerk, Primary School Teacher, Police Constable, Mid-Level Nurse, Admin Officer, Revenue Inspector, Engineer, with corresponding increases of 7%–12%.
New pay bands and overtime rates
The new pay band and interval scale have been raised. This means that the salary of an entry-level clerk will rise from R11,000 to R12,320 (a 12% increase), whereas a mid-level nurse will get from R21,000 to R23,310 (a rise of 11%). For an admin officer, it’s approximately a 7% rise while more specialized categories such as engineers and deputy directors have rises in the 9-10% range.
As regards overtime, the new rates and allowances (where applicable) will be based on the new salaries to guarantee that everyone who works a lot of overtime is treated fairly in the new scheme.
Considerations on UIF, pension, and other deductions
The rise in base salaries will push upward contributions to statutory funds such as the UIF (Unemployment Insurance Fund) and pension/retirement funds. Since deductions are calculated based on percentages, it is a simple conclusion that one’s paycheck will absorb a little bigger deduction; however, considering the bigger base, the take-home pay after deductions should remain higher.
It will be important for the worker to carefully review his pay slip after October to make sure that deductions have been correctly applied to them and reflect the new rates. If they have any concern, such errors should be brought to HR without delay so that they are not allowed to become long-standing discrepancies.
Roll-out & Disbursement Schedule
Starting in October 2025, the implementation of the salary adjustment shall get underway in terms of pay. With regard to priority and essential services such as police and emergency staff, payment shall begin early in October. Phased payments for other departments shall follow over the first fortnight for education, health, finance, and administrative units.
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