Overview
- The Department of Employment and Labour says it will roll out the next phase of a planned expansion to recruit up to 10,000 labour inspectors to strengthen workplace checks and enforcement.
- Deputy Minister Ntuthuko Sibiya says some employers deliberately hire undocumented workers and do not register them for the Unemployment Insurance Fund or the Compensation Fund to cut costs.
- Officials contend some firms budget to pay fines rather than comply with labour rules, a practice the government says weakens the deterrent effect of current penalties.
- President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned businesses against employing undocumented foreign nationals and framed enforcement changes as part of efforts to uphold the law while rejecting xenophobia.
- Authorities are monitoring planned nationwide demonstrations for June 30 and the government warns that stepped-up inspections could affect vulnerable workers and raise the risk of local unrest.