Do part-time employees get annual leave?

Yes. Annual leave accrues at one hour of paid leave for every 17 hours worked, so part-timers accrue proportionally.

Do you pay UIF on casual workers?

Yes, where the worker exceeds 24 hours a month for that employer. Deduct 1% from the wage and contribute 1% as the employer.

How long can a fixed-term contract run in South Africa?

Three months for employees earning below the BCEA earnings threshold, unless a justifiable reason under section 198B of the LRA applies. Beyond that, employment is deemed indefinite.

Do casual workers get an IRP5?

Yes. Any employee who received remuneration in the tax year must be declared to SARS and issued an IRP5, even if no PAYE was withheld.

Does Payroll Africa handle this automatically?

Yes. Payroll Africa applies BCEA and SARS rules on every pay run — public holiday premiums, UIF and SDL contributions, EMP201 totals and payslips are calculated for you and filed-ready.

How much does Payroll Africa cost?

From R90 per month for 2 employees, R401 for 10, R1,712 for 50 and R4,182 for 200 — VAT included, with payslips, leave, self-service and SARS submissions in the price.

Casual staff

Casual and part-time workers — what employers must pay

There is no such thing as a rights-free "casual" worker in South African law. The BCEA covers anyone who works more than 24 hours a month for an employer, and section 198 of the Labour Relations Act deems many temporary and labour-broker workers permanent after three months. The practical question is not whether the rules apply, but how they scale down to short hours.

Start free trial See pricing

SARS-aligned 2025/26 No credit card Free migration

Payroll Africa Editorial · SARS Payroll Compliance Team

The Payroll Africa editorial team is composed of registered tax practitioners, payroll administrators and BCEA specialists who maintain the SARS PAYE, UIF, SDL and ETI engines that power the platform. Every article is reviewed against the current SARS BRS and Basic Conditions of Employment Act before publication.

SARS registered tax practitioners
SAPA-affiliated payroll administrators
BCEA and LRA compliance reviewers

Last updated 26 Aug 2026

The 24-hour rule

Employees who work 24 hours or less per month for an employer are excluded from most BCEA provisions — leave, notice, severance and payslip rules among them. Above 24 hours a month, the full Act applies pro rata.

Because the threshold is monthly, a worker doing one eight-hour day a week crosses it. Track hours per employer per month rather than assuming a job title settles the question.

24 hours or less per month: most BCEA sections do not apply
More than 24 hours: full BCEA rights, scaled to hours worked
The national minimum wage applies from the first hour, always
UIF applies above 24 hours a month

Leave and notice for part-time staff

Annual leave accrues at one hour of paid leave for every 17 hours worked — a rate that scales cleanly for part-timers. Sick leave is the number of days the employee normally works in a six-week period, per 36-month cycle.

Notice periods follow service length: one week under six months, two weeks from six to twelve months, four weeks after a year (or after four weeks for farm and domestic workers).

PAYE, UIF and SDL on casual wages

Casual and part-time wages are remuneration. UIF is deducted at 1% with a 1% employer contribution wherever the worker exceeds 24 hours a month, and the wages count toward the employer's SDL base.

PAYE on irregular casual earnings is deducted using the standard tables on the annualised amount. Where a worker earns below the annual tax threshold, the tax comes out to nil — but they must still appear on the EMP201 and receive an IRP5.

Every worker needs an IRP5, regardless of how few shifts they worked
Do not pay casual staff off the books to avoid EMP201 lines
Directive-free 25% flat rate does not apply to ordinary casuals
ETI may be claimable for qualifying workers aged 18–29

Fixed-term contracts and the three-month rule

Section 198B of the LRA limits fixed-term contracts for employees earning below the BCEA earnings threshold to three months, unless the employer can justify a longer term on listed grounds such as a genuine project or a temporary replacement.

Beyond three months without justification, the employee is deemed employed indefinitely and must be treated no less favourably than comparable permanent staff.

Running casuals on payroll

Payroll Africa supports hourly, daily and shift-based employees alongside salaried staff in one company. Capture hours or shifts, and the system applies the minimum wage floor, overtime and public holiday premiums, UIF, PAYE and ETI, then produces payslips and the EMP201 for the whole workforce together.