Budget 2026 identifies over 4000 government ghost workers
· The South African
Budget 2026, tabled on 25 February in Cape Town, has identified 4 323 suspicious cases of ghost workers in the government’s PERSAL system. Currently, there is verification process is under way and employees who cannot be physically verified will have their salaries withheld and their employment status suspended.
Accordingly, this is part of the government’s drive to improve the efficiency of the public service and combat crime and corruption.
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R12 billion TARS saving in government
The Targeted and Responsible Savings (TARS) initiative announced in the 2025 Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) identified R12 billion in savings over the medium term. Presently, TARS is part of a series of government efforts under way to rationalise the operations of the state.
Significantly, the aim is to improve the effectiveness of service delivery. Specifically, it will eliminate waste, address underperformance and reduce duplication. Eliminating ghost workers is a key step in this process.
Consultations across government ministries and departments are under way to conclude each change and identify further savings. In many cases government is reallocating or shifting savings to priority areas or spending pressures. For example, within the transport sector, municipal Bus Rapid Transport systems which have not yet started, have had their funds swapped to commuter rail.
Public sector wage bill
The compensation of employees accounts for nearly one-third of consolidated expenditure. This therefore makes it a priority area for the National Treasury. The three-year wage agreement for 2025-2026 to 2027-2028 provides stability for the medium term.
Additionally, the Early Retirement Programme in 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 will help to reduce the wage bill. A total of R3.7 billion has been allocated to departments. The 7 687 applications approved in the first phase are expected to save R2.6 billion in 2026-2027. Identifying and getting rid of ghost workers could save R1.5 billion.
A professional civil service
The Public Service Amendment Bill will depoliticise and professionalise the civil service. It will do this by separating political and administrative roles in government. This includes ensuring that the head of a government department cannot simultaneously hold office in a political party, and restricting political interference in staff recruitment and salary determination in departments.
This interference was how State Capture took place. It hollowed out the South African Revenue Service. It allowed corruption to flourish in state-owned enterprises such as Eskom and Transnet.