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The National Minimum Wage (NMW) Commission has published a notice extending the period for submission of written inputs after it announced in December 2022 that it had started an investigation into the wages and conditions of employment in the Community Health Workers (CHW) sector.

NMW Chairperson, Professor van der Walt has reiterated that the terms of reference of the investigation are: “to investigate the wages and conditions of employment of the Community Health Workers in the health sector, with a view to establish a sectoral determination prescribing minimum wages and conditions of employment”.

Interested persons were initially given until 31 January 2023 to make inputs to the Commission.

The NMW Commission is conducting the investigation in terms of Section 52(3) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA), No 75 of 1997.  

The Community Health Worker Programme (CHWP) means:

(a)  A programme to provide public or community services through a labour-intensive programme initiated by the government and funded by public, private or donor resources;
(b)  All projects and programmes accessing public funds, including those implemented by Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and Community Based Organisations (CBOs), Faith Based Organisations (FBOs) and private companies; and
(c)  Any other programme deemed to be part of the CHWP as determined by the National Department of Health or a provincial Department of Health.

CHW usually includes among others adult community nursing, therapy services, specialist nursing, preventive services such as sexual health and smoking cessation clinics, and child health services including health visiting and school nursing.

Interested persons are given another opportunity of making written representations to the NMW Commission and these should reach the Directorate: Employment Standards, Department of Employment and Labour, Private Bag X117, Pretoria, 0001 or be sent to SDinvestigations@labour.gov.za(link sends e-mail) by 28 February 2023.

Issued by Department of Employment and Labour