By Valérie K.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Friday (December 7th) during a speech in Johannesburg that South African workers will benefit from the minimum wage as of January 1st, 2019.
It is a minimum wage of 20 rand or 3,500 rand (244 euros) per month on a 42-hour basis per week, which should benefit 70% of agricultural and 90% of the house staff, according to the authorities. “This is a historic step forward for South African workers, who have been exploited for generations,” said the South African president.
In power since February 2018 after the resignation of Jacob Zuma, Cyril Ramaphosa had promised to revive the economy of the country. This new measure, which he hailed, was criticized by the opposition parties as saying that the amount was insufficient, or that it would result in significant job losses.