Domestic worker employment contract template
This is a template, not legal advice. Fill in the form and the contract updates as you type. Download it as a PDF or a Word document you can edit, then read it through with your worker before you both sign.
Contract details
Employment contract for a domestic worker
1. Parties
This contract is between ____________________ of ____________________ ("the Employer") and ____________________, of ____________________ ("the Worker").
2. Start date and duration
Employment starts on ____________________.
This contract continues until either party ends it on notice under clause 12.
3. Place of work
The Worker will work at ____________________.
4. Job title and duties
Job title: Housekeeper.
Main duties: Cleaning, laundry and ironing, and preparing meals.
5. Hours of work
Ordinary hours are 8 hours a day, 5 days a week (40 hours a week), on Monday to Friday, from 08:00 to 17:00.
Ordinary hours may not exceed 45 hours a week, or 9 hours a day if the Worker works 5 days a week or fewer (8 hours a day for more than 5 days).
The Worker is entitled to a meal interval of at least one hour after 5 hours of continuous work, a daily rest period of at least 12 consecutive hours, and a weekly rest period of at least 36 consecutive hours, which must include Sunday unless otherwise agreed.
Overtime is worked only by agreement, up to 15 hours a week and no more than 12 hours in a day including overtime. Overtime is paid at 1.5 times the hourly wage (R45.35 an hour).
6. Sundays and public holidays
Work on a Sunday or a public holiday is only by agreement.
Sunday work is paid at double the hourly wage, or 1.5 times if Sunday is one of the Worker's normal working days, and never less than the Worker's ordinary daily wage.
If a public holiday falls on a normal working day, the Worker is paid the normal daily wage if not working, or at least double the daily wage if working. A public holiday may be exchanged for another day by agreement.
7. Wages
The Worker is paid R30.23 an hour. For the ordinary hours in clause 5 this is R1 209.20 a week, or R5 239.87 a month (weekly wage x 4 1/3).
Wages are paid monthly, on the last working day of the month, by electronic transfer into the Worker's bank account.
With every payment the Employer gives the Worker a payslip showing the information required by Sectoral Determination 7.
The wage will never be less than the national minimum wage (R30.23 an hour from 1 March 2026), and will be increased if the minimum wage increases.
8. Other payments and payment in kind
Other cash payments: none.
Payment in kind and its value: none.
9. Deductions
The Employer deducts the Worker's 1% Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) contribution and pays it, with the Employer's own 1%, to the UIF.
No accommodation is provided and no accommodation deduction is made.
Any other deduction is made only with the Worker's written consent. Repayment of a loan or advance may not be more than one-tenth of the wage on any payday.
10. Leave
Annual leave: 3 weeks on full pay in each 12-month leave cycle (15 working days for a 5-day week). Leave pay is paid before the leave starts. A public holiday that falls during annual leave on a normal working day adds a day of leave.
Sick leave: in each 36-month cycle, paid sick leave equal to the days normally worked in 6 weeks (30 days). In the first 6 months, 1 day of paid sick leave for every 26 days worked. A medical certificate may be required for absences of more than 2 consecutive days, or more than twice in 8 weeks.
Family responsibility leave: once employed for longer than 4 months, 5 days of paid leave a year when the Worker's child is born or sick, or when a spouse, life partner, parent, adoptive parent, grandparent, child, adopted child, grandchild or sibling dies.
Maternity and parental leave: at least 4 consecutive months' maternity leave, and parental leave as provided by law. UIF may pay benefits during this leave.
11. UIF and COIDA
The Employer registers the Worker with the Unemployment Insurance Fund (if the Worker works more than 24 hours a month) and with the Compensation Fund under the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA), and keeps both registrations up to date.
12. Ending the contract
Either party may end this contract on written notice of 1 week during the first 6 months of employment, and 4 weeks after that. Notice by the Employer may not be given during the Worker's leave. The Employer may pay the Worker instead of having the notice worked.
On termination the Employer pays all wages due, pay for untaken annual leave, and pro-rata leave pay if the Worker was employed for longer than 4 months, and gives the Worker a certificate of service and the UIF documents needed to claim.
Nothing in this clause affects either party's rights under the Labour Relations Act, including the right to fair dismissal procedures.
13. General
Sectoral Determination 7: Domestic Worker Sector and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act apply to this contract. Where they give the Worker better terms than this contract, they take precedence.
Any change to this contract must be in writing and signed by both parties. The Employer will explain this contract to the Worker in a language the Worker understands.
Signed by the Employer: ______________________________ Date: ____________ Place: ____________
Signed by the Worker: ______________________________ Date: ____________ Place: ____________
Witness 1: ______________________________ Witness 2: ______________________________
What the written particulars must include
Sectoral Determination 7, clause 9, lists the details every employer must give a domestic worker in writing. The template covers each one:
- Full name and address of the employer
- Name and occupation of the worker, or a brief description of the work
- Place of work (and an indication if the worker works at various places)
- Date on which employment began
- Ordinary hours and days of work
- Wage, or the rate and method of payment
- Rate of pay for overtime
- Any other cash payments the worker is entitled to
- Any payment in kind and its value
- How often wages will be paid
- Any deductions to be made
- Leave the worker is entitled to
- Notice period, or the end date if employment is for a fixed term
If the worker cannot read the contract, you must explain it in a language and manner they understand. If the terms change, update the document and give the worker a copy.
Frequently asked questions
Is a written contract required?
SD7 requires you to give the worker the main terms of employment in writing when they start, signed by you. A signed contract covering those terms is the simplest way to do this.
Is this contract legally binding?
Once both parties sign it, it is a contract. But it is a template: check that every clause matches your arrangement, and get advice from a labour lawyer or the Department of Employment and Labour if you are unsure.
Can the contract give less than the law?
No. Any clause that is worse for the worker than SD7, the BCEA or the minimum wage is replaced by the legal minimum.
Is my information stored?
No. The contract is built in your browser and downloaded directly. Names and ID numbers are not sent anywhere or kept in the page address.