Leave in South Africa

Employees are entitled to a minimum of 21 consecutive days of annual leave per year. For employees who work a five-day week, this equates to 15 working days. For those who work a six-day week, this translates to 18 working days. Annual leave accrues at a rate of 1 day for every 17 days worked or 1 hour for every 17 hours worked.

Employers should allow employees to carry over statutory leave they have accrued into the next annual leave cycle. Leave carries over to the next cycle and must be taken within six months after completion of the cycle. This must be confirmed in a leave policy to enforce the forfeiture.

Upon termination of employment, employees are entitled to be paid out for any accrued but unused annual leave.

South Africa has 12 public holidays.

In South Africa, the amount of paid (at 100% of the employee’s regular rate of pay) sick leave is based on a three-year
cycle.

For the first six months of employment, the employee is entitled to 1 day of paid sick leave for every 26 days worked.

From the first day of the 7th month, the employee receives:

• 30 days if they work a 5-day work week
• 36 days if they work a 6–day work week.
• 33 days if an employee works Monday- Friday and a Saturday every two weeks
• No paid sick leave if an employee works less than 24 hours a month.

The number of sick days taken is subtracted from these amounts to determine the total number of sick days the
employee is entitled to. At the end of the three-year cycle, the number of sick days.

An employee is entitled to four consecutive months of unpaid maternity leave. Maternity leave can begin anytime from four weeks before the expected date of birth. The employee may not work for six weeks after the birth unless a medical practitioner certifies her to do so. If the employer does not pay full maternity benefits, the employee may apply for maternity benefits from the UIF.

An employee who is an adoptive parent of a child less than two years old is entitled to adoption leave of ten weeks consecutively. If an adoption order is made in respect of two adoptive parents, only one may apply for adoption leave and the other for parental leave. The selection of choice may be exercised at the option of the adoptive parents. If the employer does not pay adoption leave benefits, the employee may apply for adoption leave benefits from the UIF.

An employee who is a commissioning parent in a surrogate motherhood agreement is entitled to ten weeks of commissioning parental leave consecutively. Commissioning parental leave may commence on the date a child is born as a result of a surrogate motherhood agreement. If the employer does not pay commissioning parental leave benefits, the employee may apply for commissioning parental leave benefits from the UIF.

Parents who are not on maternity, commissioning or adoptive leave are entitled to ten consecutive days of parental leave after the birth of their child. If the employer does not pay parental benefits, the employee may apply for parental benefits from the UIF.

All employees who have been in employment for longer than four months and who work four days per week for the employer are entitled to three days paid family responsibility leave during each annual leave cycle in instances where the employee’s child is ill, or on the death of a spouse or life partner, parent, adoptive parent, grandparent, child, adopted child, grandchild or sibling. Unused family responsibility leave is forfeited at the end of each annual leave cycle. Employees may use their annual leave or apply for unpaid leave to care for their children where family responsibility leave has been exhausted.

Employees can take unpaid leave if they have exhausted their paid leave entitlements. Employers and employees can agree on the terms and duration of unpaid leave. Unpaid leave may also be used for extended sick leave, maternity leave, or other personal reasons.