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Cape Town - A youth employment tax incentive aimed at encouraging firms to employ young work seekers will shortly be tabled for consideration by parliament.
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan who delivered his Budget Speech on Wednesday stressed that it’s not a wage subsidy and that there is a need to share the costs of expanding job opportunities by government and the private sector.
The Budget Review says the tax incentive will be part of a package of measures aimed at boosting opportunities for young work seekers.
Governments' existing approach to supporting employment growth focuses on training, skills, development, labour market activation and short-term public employment.
Programmes in support of these objectives include sector education and training austerities, further education and training colleges, small enterprise support, the Industrial Policy Action Plan, the expanded public works programme and the community work programme.
The Review says the introduction of the tax incentive, which takes into account the concerns of organised labour, will help young people enter the labour market, gain valuable experience and access career opportunities.
Protection provided by existing labour legislation, combined with oversight by the SA Revenue Service and the Department of Labour, will avoid displacement.
A similar tax incentive will be made available to eligible
workers of all ages within special economic zones.
- Fin24
* Visit our 2013 Budget section for full coverage of Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan's National Budget speech.
