R17,915 blow to teachers in South Africa
South African public school teachers have seen their salaries increase significantly since 2019, but the increases have failed to keep pace with inflation, leaving many worse off in real terms.
For an entry-level teacher with a Relative Equivalent Qualification Value (REQV) 14 qualification, the gap amounts to R17,915 over the period, equivalent to roughly R2,559 a year.
The figures are contained in the salary adjustment data published by the Department of Basic Education, which sets out the salary notches applicable to teachers across the public education system.
Teacher salaries vary considerably depending on qualifications, experience and seniority. At the lower end of the scale, a teacher can earn around R169,707 a year, while salaries at the top end can reach about R1.33 million annually.
South Africa’s public education system employs approximately 411,200 teachers across 22,259 schools. A teacher’s basic salary is determined primarily by salary scales published in the Government Gazette.
Teachers enter the system at a particular notch based on their qualifications and experience, and can move up the scale through annual increments, provided they meet minimum performance requirements.
For example, a teacher with a matric certificate and four years of university education would typically enter the system at Notch 164. In 2026, this carries an annual salary of R366,051, or about R30,504 a month.
However, in 2019, the same minimum salary was R278,640, equivalent to approximately R23,220 a month. This represents a nominal increase of 31.4% over seven years. The problem is that inflation rose by 37.8% over the same period.
To have maintained the same purchasing power as the R278,640 salary in 2019, the teacher would need to be earning about R383,966 a year in 2026, or roughly R32,000 a month.
This leaves the current salary R17,915 below the inflation-adjusted level. Experience and promotion can substantially alter a teacher’s earnings.
Department heads, deputy principals and principals can earn considerably more than classroom teachers with similar qualifications, while experienced teachers generally progress through the salary notches over time.
| Role | Min. salary 2019 | Min. salary 2026 | Inflation adj. | Diff. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Educator with REQV14 | R278,640 | R366,051 (+31.4%) | R383,966 (+37.8%) | -R17,915 (-R2,559 yoy) |
Government salaries should be cut
Teachers also receive benefits that provide some financial support beyond their basic salaries.
These include an employer pension contribution of 13% of basic salary, a 13th cheque, and a medical aid subsidy for those who belong to the Government Employees Medical Scheme.
Teachers who own or rent homes can also qualify for a housing allowance of around R2,000 a month.
However, economist Dawie Roodt has argued that the central problem with South Africa’s public sector is not simply the amount being spent on salaries, but the value being delivered in return.
“State employees represent 3% of the South African population but account for 17% of the economy in salaries,” Roodt said at the Kragdag Conference.
He argued that South Africa needs more teachers and police officers, but said they should be paid differently and held to higher performance standards.
“However, they ought to be paid significantly less and required to deliver far better results than they currently do,” he said.
“So essentially, you ought to halve the salaries of all teachers, double the total number of teachers, and expect more from them.”
Roodt acknowledged that some teachers are “hopelessly underpaid and overworked”, but argued that this is not representative of the public service as a whole.
“Overall, teachers in South Africa are overpaid and underworked, and there are too few of them,” he said.
This likely refers to the top of the remuneration table, at which senior teachers, heads of departments, deputy principals, and principals get paid between R800,000 (R66,667pm) to R1.33 million (R11,833 pm).
“So, more money isn’t the issue. The real problem lies in the quality of output and, of course, better management.”
He also criticised the relationship between government spending on education and educational outcomes.
“If you plot this on a scatter graph, you see that our spending is very high, but our quality is very low,” he said.
“We spend a lot on education and other items, but the quality is poor. That is the real problem, not money.”
The full gazette with all salary notches can be read below.
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