New wages for workers from next week – and other laws planned for South Africa you should know about Subscribe South Africa’s new minimum wage of R21.69 for each ordinary hour worked will officially take effect on Monday (1 March 2021). Sector-specific changes will also be introduced on the same day, including: Farmworkers are entitled to a minimum wage of R21.69 per hour; Domestic workers are entitled to a minimum wage of R19.09 per hour; Workers employed on an expanded public works programme are entitled to a minimum wage of R11.93 per hour. Employment and Labour minister Thulas Nxesi said the minimum wage is a tool to ensure that vulnerable workers do not fall below the poverty line and it is designed to reduce inequality and huge disparities in income in the national labour market.