The Citizen reports that salaries increased for the sixth consecutive month in September, suggesting that the job market is strengthening in the third quarter of 2025.

Almost 200,000 more salaries were paid in the first nine months of the year compared to the same period last year. According to the PayInc Net Salary Index, which tracks the average nominal net salaries of approximately 2.1 million earners in SA, the steady increase in salaries aligns with the gradual improvement in economic activity and reflects the labour market’s resilience over recent months. Shergeran Naidoo of PayInc indicated: “The PayInc Net Salary Index reached R21,428, which was 0.3% up on August’s level and 2.3% higher than a year ago.” She said the average net salary continued to strengthen, showing a 4.3% increase in the first nine months of 2025 compared to the corresponding period in 2024. In real terms, the PayInc Net Salary Index increased by 0.2% month-on-month to R20,806 in September 2025, marginally up from R20,767 in August.

Economist Elize Kruger commented that the salary index “confirms the narrative that 2025 will, on average, be a good salary year, despite uncertainties and challenges impacting the economic outlook.” She added: “With average consumer inflation forecast at 3.3% in 2025, lower than the 4.4% in 2024 and industry data suggesting an average salary increase above 5%, 2025 will likely be the second consecutive year of a real increase in earnings.”

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ina Opperman at The Citizen
• Read too, Six months of good news for salaries in South Africa, at BusinessTech

Get other news reports at the SA LabourNews home page