Employee performance, retention, and service delivery in the context of stagnant remuneration in South Africa’s public sector

Abstract

Financial pressures in South Africa’s public sector have increased efforts to control the wage bill, raising concerns about the long-term effects of stagnant remuneration on employee performance, retention, and service delivery. Although the link between pay and motivation is well known, less attention has been given to how prolonged salary stagnation, within a constrained fiscal environment, affects both employees and service delivery outcomes. This paper addresses this gap by examining the effects of stagnant remuneration in the South African public service. The paper used a qualitative narrative review of secondary data, including academic literature, government reports, and policy documents. Sources were selected based on their relevance to remuneration, employee performance, and service delivery, and were analysed thematically. The findings show that stagnant remuneration is not only a Human Resource issue but also a service delivery issue, as it directly affects employee motivation and institutional capacity. Guided by Equity Theory, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, and the paper’s conceptual model, the results indicate that perceived unfairness and rising living costs reduce motivation, increase turnover, and weaken organisational capacity, especially in sectors such as health, education, and local government. This creates a tension between fiscal sustainability and workforce effectiveness, which ultimately affects service quality. The paper contributes by linking remuneration challenges to service delivery outcomes and indicates the need for a balanced approach to managing the public sector wage bill.

Keywords: {'name': 'stagnant remuneration'}, {'name': 'employee retention'}, {'name': 'employee performance'}, {'name': 'public service delivery'}, {'name': 'human resource management'}

Authors & affiliations

Simon Matome Nkgapele
Sol Plaatje University

Sifiso Mofokeng
Nelson Mandela University

Mosekama Osia Mokhele
Nelson Mandela University

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