What South African Employers Need to Know Now

On 26 February 2026, the Minister of Employment and Labour published the Labour Law Amendment Bill for public comment.

The proposed amendments signal meaningful changes to South Africa’s labour law landscape and, if enacted, will directly affect how employers manage employment contracts, leave, retrenchments, probation, minimum wage compliance and more.

These amendments follow over two years of engagement between government, organised labour and business through NEDLAC, as well as recent Constitutional Court rulings on parental leave.

Labour Laws Affected by the Proposed Amendments

If passed, the Bill will introduce changes to the following legislation:

  • Labour Relations Act, 1995 (LRA)
  • Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 (BCEA)
  • Employment Equity Act, 1998 (EEA)
  • Unemployment Insurance Act, 2001 (UIA)
  • National Minimum Wage Act, 2018 (NMWA)

Key Proposed Labour Law Amendments Explained

1. Stronger Protection for On-Call and Zero-Hour Workers

The Bill proposes a new section 9B in the BCEA to regulate:

  • On-call arrangements
  • Zero-hour contracts
  • “If-and-when” employment agreements

Employers would need to clearly define:

  • Maximum working hours
  • Availability expectations
  • Notice periods for scheduling work
  • Notice periods for cancelling shifts

If shifts are cancelled without proper notice, employees would still be entitled to payment.

Purpose: Greater predictability and income protection for vulnerable workers.

2. Gender-Neutral Parental Leave

Following the Van Wyk Constitutional Court ruling, the Bill introduces a gender-neutral parental leave framework, including:

  • Four months of parental leave for all parents
  • Applicability to biological, adoptive and surrogate parents
  • Shared leave where both parents are employed
  • Adoption leave is limited to children under six

The UIA will be amended to align UIF benefits with these changes.

3. Increased Severance Pay

Statutory severance pay may increase from:

  • One week per completed year of service
    to
  • Two weeks per completed year of service

This increase would apply only to years of service completed after the amendment takes effect.

4. Expanded Definition of “Employee”

The Bill proposes a broader definition of an employee, potentially extending labour protections to individuals who:

  • Provide work or services to another party
  • Are not operating an independent business

This aims to curb disguised employment relationships and regulate non-traditional work arrangements.

5. Expanded Harassment Claims at the CCMA

Under proposed changes to the EEA:

  • All harassment-related discrimination claims (not only sexual harassment) may be referred to the CCMA for arbitration

This significantly strengthens employee protections across all prohibited grounds of discrimination.

6. Changes to National Minimum Wage Compliance

Deferred payments such as:

  • Retirement fund contributions
  • Similar benefit payments

will no longer count towards minimum wage compliance.

Minimum wage must reflect actual cash remuneration received.

7. Temporary Relief for New Businesses

To support start-ups and small businesses:

  • Employers with fewer than 50 employees
  • In operation for less than two years

8. Simplified Disciplinary Procedures During Probation

Proposed amendments to section 188 of the LRA suggest:

  • No formal opportunity to respond may be required during the first three months of employment
  • Or during a longer, justified probation period

This aims to balance fairness with operational practicality during probation.

9. Limits on Remedies for High-Income Employees

Employees earning above R1.8 million per annum (adjusted annually) may:

  • No longer qualify for reinstatement or re-employment (unless dismissal is automatically unfair)
  • Be limited to capped compensation awards

This reflects the legislature’s view on senior executives’ bargaining power.

10. Changes to Large-Scale Retrenchment Procedures

Amendments to section 189A propose:

  • Direct referral to the Labour Court where facilitation is used
  • Mandatory CCMA conciliation where no facilitator is appointed

The Bill also removes separate procedural fairness challenges, allowing substantive and procedural disputes to be dealt with together.

Public Comment Deadline

📅 Public comments close on 28 March 2026

Employers, industry bodies and labour representatives are encouraged to submit feedback before the deadline.

What Employers Should Do Now

Although the Bill is not yet law, employers should begin reviewing:

  • Employment contracts
  • Parental leave policies
  • Retrenchment frameworks
  • Probation and disciplinary processes
  • Minimum wage calculations

Early preparation reduces compliance risk once amendments take effect.

Labour law rarely changes overnight — but when it does, the impact is felt for years. These proposed amendments reflect a clear shift towards greater employee protection, clearer employer obligations, and modernised workplace regulation.

  • This article reflects the Labour Law Amendment Bill published for public comment on 26 February 2026. As it is still in draft form, the proposed amendments may change before the legislation is finalised and enacted.

Unsure how these proposed changes could affect your business?

HR Consult helps employers:

  • Interpret legislative amendments
  • Update contracts and policies
  • Prepare for CCMA and Labour Court risk
  • Stay compliant without losing operational flexibility

👉 Speak to HR Consult now — because compliance is always cheaper before it becomes a dispute. ⚖️✨