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Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 (Act No. 75 of 1997)

Sectoral Determinations

Sectoral Determination 4 : Clothing and Knitting Sector, South Africa

3. Remuneration

 

(1) Minimum wages: The minimum wages which an employer shall pay to employees shall be as specified herein: Provided that—
(i) if a new employer, as defined in clause 2(3), has been engaged in the sector for a period of not more than 12 months such wages may be reduced by not more than 10 per cent during such period, whereafter the minimum wages specified herein shall become payable.
(ii) an employer who, at the coming into effect of this determination, employs not more than 30 employees in the aggregate in or in connection with his business and whose annual turnover does not exceed R450 000.00 shall pay his employees, in the first 12 months after the coming into effect of this determination, 70% of the wages specified herein and thereafter pay the minimum wages as specified. For the purpose of this subclause "annual turnover" means, at any date, the turnover for the preceding 12 months.

 

Wages for Employees in the Clothing Division

Category A

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas


First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter


First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter


Per week

Per week

Per week


Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

207.81

222.31

241.65

0-6 months

144.99

159.48

178.82

7-12 months

275.15

294.35

319.95

7-12 months

191.97

211.16

236.76

 

"Category A" means an employee engaged in any one or more of the following capacities or duties in the clothing division:

 

Capacities: Assistant Storeperson / Automatic Hydraulic Hat Presser / Belt Person/ Boiler Attendant / Cardboard Box Maker / Cleaner / Coat Turner / Cutter Of Traveller’s Swatches / Despatch Packer / General Worker / Hat Sprayers / Ironer / Layer by Hand / Layer by Machine / Marker / Operator / Packer / Patent Turner / Pinner / Plain Sewer / Sorter / Stamper / Winder.

 

Duties: covering buckles by hand or machine and/or trimming and cleaning belts after lining and belts have been machined together / eyelet punching and letting / guiding material with paper through automatic pleating machine / putting fasteners on caps / putting material between two paper looms (formers) and preparing for steam box in hand or loom pleating process / putting prepared formers in steam box and taking them out again in hand or loom pleating / riveting buckles, bending belt buckles / punching holes for buckles and prongs / pressing prongs into buckles / stapling buckles onto belt / rubberising, i.e. waterproofing processes on the work of smearing rubber solution upon seams or edges and rolling them over with a small wooden hand roller / cleaning off any rubber solution, painting seams or oilskins and waterproof hats / spreading of PVC (plastic solution) in waterproofing process and/or on raincoats and protective wear / raking material out of looms in hand or loom pleating process

 

 

Wages for Employees in the Clothing Division

Category B

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas


First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter


First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter


Per week

Per week

Per week


Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

210.52

225.21

244.80

0-6 months

146.88

161.56

181.15

7-12 months

230.65

246.74

268.20

7-12 months

160.92

177.01

198.46

13-18 months

250.00

267.44

290.70

13-18 months

174.42

191.86

215.11

19-24 months

275.15

294.35

319.95

19-24 months

191.97

211.16

236.76

 

"Category B" means an employee engaged in any one or more of the following capacities or duties in the clothing division:

 

Baster / Clicker / Conveyor Feeder / Cutter / Examiner / Finisher by Hand / Fitter-Up / Folder / Lay Copier / Machinist / Maker of Bows for Dresses / Operator of Automatic Lace, Embroidery or Monogramming Machine / Presser / Seam Welder / Setter of Automatic Pleating Machines / Shaper / Sloper / Any Other Employee Not Elsewhere Specified / Factory Clerk.

 

 

Wages for Employees in the Knitting Division

Category C

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

236.45

252.95

274.95

0-6 months

164.97

181.46

203.46

7-12 months

268.57

287.31

312.30

7-12 months

187.38

206.11

231.10

13-18 months

300,69

321.67

349.65

13-18 months

209.79

230.76

258.74

19-24 months

332.43

355.62

386.55

19-24 months

231.93

255.12

286.04

25+ months

364.55

389.98

423.90

25+ months

254.34

279.77

313.68

 

"Category C" means an employee engaged in any one or more of the following capacities or duties in the knitting division:

 

Capacities: Colouring Mass-Measurer / Cutter / Dyer’s Assistant / Handyperson / Knitting Machine Operator / Linker / Loader of magazine or comb Mender / Overlocker / Plain Sewer / Sewing Machinist including button, buttonhole and hemming machinist / Shaper of fully fashioned garments / Warper / Wrap Knitter.

 

 

Wages for Employees in the Knitting Division

Category D

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

236.45

252.95

274.95

0-6 months

161.97

181.46

203.46

7-12 months

260.06

278.20

302.40

7-12 months

181.44

199.58

223.77

13-18 months

284.05

303.87

339.30

13-18 months

198.18

217.99

244.42

19-24 months

307.66

329.13

357.75

19-24 months

214.65

236.11

264.73

25+ months

357.20

382.12

415.35

25+ months

249.21

274.13

307.35

 

"Category D" means an employee engaged in any one or more of the following capacities or duties in the knitting division:

 

Capacities: Backwinder / Boiler Attendant / Cleaner / Despatch Packer / Draw Threader / Examiner / Floorwalker / General Worker / Grader / Mender of socks / Operator / Parcel Maker / Pre-Cutter / Presser / Pre-or post boarder or former / Sampler / Seamer / Sorter / Turner / Winder / Yarn changer (pig tailor).

 

Duties: Employees engaged in transferring, labelling, trimming off surplus threads / folding / carding and/or packing.

 

 

Wages for Employees in the Knitting Division

Category E

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

252.71

270.34

293.85

0-6 months

176.31

193.94

217.44

7-12 months

297.00

310.50

337.50

7-12 months

202.50

222.75

249.75

13-18 months

340.56

356.04

387.00

13-18 months

232.20

255.42

286.38

19-24 months

384.51

401.99

436.95

19-24 months

262.17

288.38

323.34

25+ months

431.24

450.84

490.05

25+ months

294.03

323.43

362.63

 

"Category E" means an employee engaged in any one or more of the following capacities or duties in the clothing and knitting division:

 

Assist Foreperson / Dyer / Mechanic / Patternmaker / Supervisor.

 

 

Wages for Employers in the Clothing and Knitting Division

Bank Knife Cutter

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

224.07

239.70

260.55

0-6 months

156.33

171.96

192.80

7-12 months

248.06

265.37

288.45

7-12 months

173.07

190.37

213.45

13-18 months

270.90

289.80

315.00

13-18 months

189.00

207.90

233.10

19-24 months

296.44

317.12

344.70

19-24 months

206.82

227.50

255.07

25+ months

333.14

358.52

389.70

25+ months

233.82

257.20

288.37

 

"Band Knife Cutter" means an employee who cuts out all articles of wearing apparel, linings, trimmings or interlinings with a bandknife.

 

Wages for Employers in the Clothing and Knitting Division

Clerical

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

0-6 months

231.81

247.98

269.55

0-6 months

161.73

177.90

199.46

7-12 months

261.99

280.27

304.65

7-12 months

182.79

201.06

225.44

13-18 months

286.38

306.36

333.00

13-18 months

199.80

219.78

246.42

19-24 months

341.33

365.14

396.90

19-24 months

238.14

261.95

293.70

 

"Clerical Employee" means an employee who is engaged in the following capacities and duties in the clothing and knitting division:

 

Capacities: Cashier / Despatch Clerk / Storeperson / Shipping Clerk / Invoice Clerk / Work Study Clerk / Telephone Switchboard Operator.

 

Duties: writing, typing and filing / operating a calculating machine / computer Terminal / punch card machine or accounting machine / any other clerical work but does not include any other class of employee elsewhere defined, notwithstanding the fact that clerical work may form part of such employee’s work.

 

 

Wages for Employers in the Clothing and Knitting Division

In the Magisterial District of Hammarsdale, Camperdown, Umzinto, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Uitenhage

In all other Areas

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

First 12 months

Second 12 months

Third 12 months & thereafter

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

 

Per week

Per week

Per week

Assistant head cutter

406.73

435.11

472.95

Assistant head cutter

283.77

312.14

349.98

Head cutter

508.51

543.99

591.30

Head cutter

354.78

390.25

437.56

Fore- person

390.09

417.31

453.60

Fore- person

272.16

299.37

335.66

Watch- person

284.44

304.29

330.75

Watch- person

198.45

218.29

244.75

Driver 1

454kg

267.41

286.07

310.95

Driver

1 454kg

186.57

205.22

230.10

Driver 2

454-2722kg

292.57

312.98

340.20

Driver 2

454-2722kg

204.12

224.53

251.74

Driver 3

2722-4540kg

340.94

364.73

396.45

Driver 3

2722-4540kg

237.86

261.65

293.37

Driver 4

4540kg

412.15

440.91

479.25

Driver 4

4540kg

287.55

316.30

354.64

 

(2) Basis of contract.- For the purposes of this clause the contract of employment of an employee, shall be on a weekly basis, and except as provided for in clause 6(4), he or she shall be paid in respect of a week not less than the full weekly wage prescribed in subclause (1), as read with the definition of "wage" in clause 1 and with subclause (3), for an employee of his or her category in the area in which he or she works, whether he or she has in that week worked the maximum number of ordinary hours of work applicable to him or her or less.

 

(3) Differential wage.- An employer who requires or permits a member of one category of employees to perform work for longer than one hour on any day, either in addition to his or her own work or in substitution therefore, work of another category for which—
(a) a wage higher than that of his or her own category is set out in subclause (1), shall pay to such employee in respect of that day, not less than the daily wage calculated at the higher rate; or
(b) a rising scale of wages terminating in a wage higher than that of his or her own category is set out in subclause (1), shall pay to such employee in respect of that day not less than the daily wage calculated on the notch in the rising scale immediately above the wage which the employee was receiving for his or her ordinary work:

Provided that—

(i) this subclause shall not apply where the difference between categories in terms of subclause (1) is based on experience;
(ii) unless expressly otherwise provided in a written contract between an employer and an employee, nothing in this determination shall be so construed as to preclude an employer from requiring an employee to perform work of another category for which the same or a lower wage is prescribed.

 

(4) Calculation of wages.- The hourly, daily or monthly wage of an employee shall be calculated as indicated in the definitions of these expressions in clause 1.