Incentivising for achievement

Remuneration mix aligned to strategy

Our remuneration strategy is aligned with the overall NWU strategy, business drivers and values, ensuring a good skills and culture fit.

Market-related remuneration is essential for recruiting and retaining the best staff. Our remuneration mix has variable and fixed elements and includes monetary and non-monetary rewards. Variable pay includes performance bonuses and various value-adding allowances and is paid according to the results of individual remuneration reviews.

We ensure the competitiveness of guaranteed pay through annual benchmarking.

Employees contribute 7,5% to the pension fund and can choose an employer contribution of 12%, 15%, 17,5% or 20%.

Remuneration governance and management

The Remuneration Committee of Council is responsible for oversight of remuneration.

This committee understands how the income differentials between the higher and lower salary bands affect fair and responsible remuneration. It therefore strives to close the income differentials.

While working towards this, the Remuneration Committee contributes to the positioning of the NWU as a value-adding institution for employees and other stakeholders by enhancing the salaries of academic staff.

The salary increases agreed on through the collective bargaining process for 2022 supported both objectives: the increases built on the differentiated increase that was introduced from 2019 onwards to cater for academic staff and staff at the lower income bands.

Executive contracts

Council oversees and approves the appointment of senior officer bearers, including the vice‑chancellor, deputy vicechancellors, the registrar, executive directors and deputy vice‑chancellors for assignable functions and campus operations.

Name	Basic salary	Employee benefits	Other allowance payments	Total cost to NWU 2022
Prof ND Kgwadi*	431 605	34 109	309 435	775 148
Prof MB Tyobeka*	1 940 387	197 007	1 014 307	3 151 701
Prof LA Du Plessis*	2 327 507	283 330	1 051 905	3 662 743
Prof D Balia	2 242 293	213 077	247 472	2 702 842
Prof S Swanepoel	2 013 511	327 068	204 078	2 544 657
Prof M Verhoef	2 566 838	281 698	827 342	3 675 878
Prof RJ Balfour	2 301 109	245 755	308 007	2 854 871
Prof MJ Mphahlele	2 366 459	223 901	165 634	2 755 994
Mrs E de Beer	2 565 171	275 087	1 266 316	4 106 574
Prof V Singh	2 166 192	206 118	232 685	2 604 995
Mr NC Manoko	2 037 324	193 175	197 292	2 427 791
Dr JS Chalufu	1 890 102	179 634	148 712	2 218 448
Prof DM Modise*	1 819 642	173 181	195 565	2 188 387
Grand total	26 668 141	2 833 140	6 168 750	35 670 031

External members’ fees

As a token of our gratitude for their time and effort, members of Council and Council committees receive remuneration in the form of an honorarium, paid in August and December. The honorarium is linked to our annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) process and approved by Council’s Executive Committee.

Name	R value
Mrs UAD Baravalle	87 792
Mrs S Britz	62 186
Prof AL Combrink	25 606
Mr JDS de Bruyn	95 092
Rev PD Dinkebogile	41 184
Mr XV Hadebe	32 326
Mrs RA Kenosi	165 556
Mr TC Kgomo	84 252
Adv M Kruger	60 132
Mr CS Mabe	80 452
Ms S Mlambo	18 290
Mr SM Mohapi	43 864
Mr TV Mokgatlha	80 519
Mr LE Seilane	21 932
Mr AM Sorgdrager	361 953
Ms E Stander	37 809
MR MSJ Thabethe	86 077
Mrs PP Thebe	10 974
Mr PM Tlhabanyane	70 448
Prof MB Tyobeka	62 361
Mrs M van Zyl	43 292
Mr TP Venter	21 948
Ms PS Moleke	3 658
Mr OE Mongale	117 040
Mrs MJ Mwase	27 415
Adv PG Seleka	43 896
Grand total	1 786 054

Organisational culture

The NWU Culture Change Project celebrates the milestones achieved in the establishment and embodiment of a unified NWU culture.

In 2022, we revised and relaunched the NWU values and promoted values-driven behaviours among staff and students.

Major launch events were the NWU cook-off for senior management, a gala evening for senior management and the Student Representative Council and the awarding of seven bursaries, each worth R5 000, to students in need.

Other activities that promoted awareness of the revised values were a Sidewalk Art exhibition, an Africa Day Celebration, the Purple Race and the NWU Organisational Citizenship project.