Remuneration and Benefits Consultant at Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)

About the job: 

• The CSIR has a vacancy for a Remuneration and Benefits Consultant in the CSIR Human Capital (HC) portfolio. The incumbent will be responsible for driving excellence in job management-related activities and processes in support of the organisational remuneration management. The incumbent will manage the job evaluation process and provide advice and guidance on job evaluation requests. The incumbent will promote the understanding of benefits, Employee Value Proposition, in support of staff retention and guide employees on insured risk-benefit offerings, manage effective stakeholder engagement and relationships. Manage remuneration and benefits projects. This position is based in Pretoria.
• This position reports to Total Rewards Manager.
• About the Human Capital Management Portfolio.

The HC Development and Management portfolio is a requisite pillar in ensuring the achievement of the strategic objective of building and transforming the required human capital and embedding the values of CSIR¿s Excellence, People-centred, Integrity and Collaboration (EPIC).

Key responsibilities:

Job Management

• Provide expert advice and guidance on job descriptions and job evaluations;
• Drive quality assurance of job descriptions in the organization;
• Provide training in writing job descriptions for the business;
• Maintain the active job directory in the HC system;
• Actively manage job description and evaluation catalogues and database;
• Actively manage and participate in job evaluation process. Provide training on the job catalogue and job database.

Remuneration

• Provide input and reports for the annual salary surveys and conduct annual and ad hoc market benchmarking exercise(s);
• Provide inputs and reports for remuneration and benefits trend surveys;
• Contribute to the annual market benchmark report for Exco/Board;
• Calculate and provide internal benchmark information, on request;
• Provide support in the annual salary increase and short-term incentive payment processes;
• Provide inputs for Human Capital Management Reports;
• Provide inputs in the review and development of Remuneration and Benefits related policies, procedures, guidelines, process flows, templates, etc;
• Provide recommendations for continuous improvement of processes.

Recognition Programmes

• Coordinate and provide support for the Excellence Awards process;
• Validate and recommend long service award milestones;

Employee Benefits

• Provide expert advice on employees on insured risk benefit offerings;
• Provide guidance and support with risk insurance, death claims, pension fund enquiries, transfers and withdrawals;
• Engage with Pension Fund Administrator, Benefit consultants, Risk insurer on escalated enquiries, withdrawal and insurance claims;
• Provide recommendations for continuous improvement of processes;

Employee Communication and Engagement

• Drive awareness campaigns. Arrange and coordinate webinars and roadshows;
• Coordinate logistics and manage the on-site visits by service providers;
• Present employee benefits offering and package structuring options at monthly on-boarding information sessions;
• Present at monthly off-boarding sessions the various pension fund withdrawal options, benefit conversion options and tax implications;
• Engage with Pension Fund Administrator, Benefit consultants, Risk insurer on escalated enquiries, withdrawal and insurance claims;

Stakeholder Engagement

• Establish and maintain professional relationships with internal stakeholders and external service providers, with a strong focus on client service and service delivery;
• Collaborate with internal teams (e.g. wellness, communications, HC) to plan and organize special events and communication drives;
• Act as liaison between service providers and payroll / e-HR;

Project Management

• Actively manage the projects of the remuneration and benefits team;
• Actively participate in ad hoc projects and initiatives.

Qualifications, skills and experience:

• Minimum of BCom degree in human resource management/ industrial psychology or any other related field with five years¿ experience in human resources /remuneration and benefits/ payroll.
• BCom Hons degree in human resource management/industrial psychology will be advantageous.
• Experience in job description writing and job evaluation will be advantageous
• Knowledge/understanding of King Corporate Governance Code, Labour Relations Act, Employment Equity Act, Basic Conditions of Employment Act, Protection of Personal Information Act is advantageous.

Advantageous Certifications/Accreditations

• Global Reward Professional (GRP) certification or Minimum Rewards Standards (MRS) accreditation
• Registration with a professional body (such as SARA)
• Professional Designation (SARA)
• Insurance Institute of SA (IISA) Certification
• Certification in a recognised job grading tool
• Project Management certification
• Competencies required:
• Numerical skills and analytical thinking
• Stakeholder, partnership, and relationship management skills.
• Interpersonal, negotiation, and communication skills (written, verbal, presentation).
• Engaging and managing diversity
• Customer service orientation
• Programme and project management
• Resilience, perseverance and stress management
• Results and solution-orientated

What¿s in it for you? 

The CSIR offers:

• Flexible hybrid work arrangement;
• Learning and development opportunities.
• Competitive and market-related remuneration packages.
• Total guaranteed salary packages which encompass contributions to the pension fund, risk insurance and medical scheme.
• We openly acknowledge and reward our employees' contributions and accomplishments through our esteemed CSIR Excellence Awards.      

Closing Date

16/01/2026