Insurance group Clientèle has set its minimum pay at just less than R4,800 a month, becoming the latest listed financial services company to disclose its minimum pay.
The group, which employs about 4,400 employees, on Friday opened up on its thinking about pay and incentives.
Much of the group’s workforce falls in the semiskilled category, with about 3,187 of its employees in this group at end-June. Professionally qualified staffers account for just 195 of the company’s workforce.
The company’s senior and top management comprises 187 individuals, with the top 42 managers paid a combined R193m in the year ended June. Group MD Basil Reekie raked in R22.5m in total remuneration including short- and long-term incentives.
The company said in its annual report that based on its staff survey overall sentiment among staff was positive, and the management team had worked with their departments through deep-dive focus groups to identify areas of focus to continue to enhance morale.
“For the annual salary review, employees received increases that are above the reported inflation figures. In addition to the salary increases and performance-related bonuses, Clientèle’s nonmanagement employees received discretionary bonuses in December 2024, which helped staff with the festive season and back-to-school expenses,” it said.
“The benefits offered to employees (at the group’s cost) through the Clientèle Perks programme have continued to be popular among staff. The annual staff awards continue to be a platform for the executive team to recognise high-performing individuals and teams in front of their peers and the broader management team.”
As for executives, the group said it was pivoting from an emphasis on its share price movement to reward management, to rather focus on the movement in embedded value.
The group said this metric was a more appropriate reflection of the value created over a period than the movement in the share price.
“As a consequence, the board has resolved to take all necessary steps to terminate the existing scheme and replace it with a new cash settled Bonus Rights Plan where the value of a bonus right is linked to the movement in the embedded value rather than the movement in the share price,” it said.
“The closure of the Bonus Rights Scheme and the implementation of the new Bonus Rights Plan is effective October 1 2025.”
Several financial services groups have begun disclosing their minimum pay, with Old Mutual paying about R16,000 a month and Santam R15,000.
SA’s banks have also begun disclosing their minimum pay. Nedbank earlier this year increased its minimum wage by 6.7% to R240,000 a year, while Absa hiked its minimum pay 8.7% to R250,000. The country’s largest bank by assets, Standard Bank, pays a minimum salary of R258,390 for its unionised employees in SA.
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