South Africa's try-before-you-hire platform

Stop hiring on promises.Hire on proof.

Set up a paid trial shift (up to 30 days). See how someone actually shows up, works, communicates, and fits your team — before you make it permanent.

Free to register & post R500/month to trial R1,500 only if you hire

Post a Trial Job See How It Works

No credit card. No commitment. 2-minute setup.

Let's be brutally honest about frontline hiring in SA.

CVs are inflated or irrelevant

Interviews reward confidence, not competence

References are unreliable

Probation periods still end in disputes

CCMA exposure is real and expensive

No job board solves this.
No recruiter solves this.
They all pretend to.

ShiftMate removes the guess.

See them work. Then decide.

How It Works

Three steps. No recruiters. No agency markup. No CV roulette.

1

Post Your Job

Tell us the role, location, and what good looks like. No lengthy forms, no recruiter briefings. You're live in under 2 minutes — and it costs you nothing.

Free. No credit card.

2

We Find Your Match

We surface pre-screened candidates who fit your exact role, location, and requirements. You review a shortlist of real people — not a pile of random CVs.

Shortlisted, not spammed

3

See Them Work. Then Decide.

They do your actual shifts, in your real environment. You see reliability, work ethic, and team fit first-hand — before you make any permanent commitment.

R500/month trial fee.
+ R1,500 once-off only if you hire permanently.

Post a Trial Job

The Working Interview is the interview.

(up to a 30-day paid trial shift)

Not "tell me about yourself." Show me, in the real job.

Reliability

Do they arrive, on time, again?

Work Ethic

What they do when nobody's watching

Communication

With customers, managers, teammates

Pressure Response

Busy periods, problems, pace

Team Fit

Do they lift the room… or drain it?

“

Before I make a permanent hire, I want to see them work.

— ShiftMate Employer

What Employers Tell Us

"We hired 4 people through ShiftMate. All 4 are still with us 6 months later. Before this, we'd lose 3 out of 4 within the first 90 days."

TK

Thabo K.

Verified User

Restaurant Owner, Durban

"Saved us R45,000 in recruitment fees last year. And our retention is up 60%. The trial shift shows you everything interviews can't."

SM

Sarah M.

Verified User

Call Centre Manager, Sandton

"The trial shift saved me from a bad hire. The guy interviewed like a rockstar but couldn't handle the pressure on day one. Worth every rand."

JV

Johan V.

Verified User

Warehouse Manager, Johannesburg

"We've tried everything — agencies, job boards, walk-ins. ShiftMate gives us workers who actually show up and stay. Game changer."

LN

Lindiwe N.

Verified User

HR Director, Cape Town

"3 permanent hires in 2 months. All still with us. The trial period lets you see the real person, not just interview performance."

PM

Pieter M.

Verified User

Operations Manager, Pretoria

"We hired someone and the next day they resigned saying they had been offered something better. Now we can find someone else pretty much straight away."

ZD

Zanele D.

Verified User

Store Manager, Pietermaritzburg

"We've always been afraid to hire because we don't want to end up stuck with someone who can't do the job. Trial shifts solve that — come in, prove yourself, then let's talk. Brilliant."

RN

Raj N.

Verified User

Business Owner, Umhlanga

"We hired 4 people through ShiftMate. All 4 are still with us 6 months later. Before this, we'd lose 3 out of 4 within the first 90 days."

TK

Thabo K.

Verified User

Restaurant Owner, Durban

"Saved us R45,000 in recruitment fees last year. And our retention is up 60%. The trial shift shows you everything interviews can't."

SM

Sarah M.

Verified User

Call Centre Manager, Sandton

"The trial shift saved me from a bad hire. The guy interviewed like a rockstar but couldn't handle the pressure on day one. Worth every rand."

JV

Johan V.

Verified User

Warehouse Manager, Johannesburg

"We've tried everything — agencies, job boards, walk-ins. ShiftMate gives us workers who actually show up and stay. Game changer."

LN

Lindiwe N.

Verified User

HR Director, Cape Town

"3 permanent hires in 2 months. All still with us. The trial period lets you see the real person, not just interview performance."

PM

Pieter M.

Verified User

Operations Manager, Pretoria

"We hired someone and the next day they resigned saying they had been offered something better. Now we can find someone else pretty much straight away."

ZD

Zanele D.

Verified User

Store Manager, Pietermaritzburg

"We've always been afraid to hire because we don't want to end up stuck with someone who can't do the job. Trial shifts solve that — come in, prove yourself, then let's talk. Brilliant."

RN

Raj N.

Verified User

Business Owner, Umhlanga

SARS Employment Tax Incentive (ETI)

The government pays you to hire young workers.

Most SA employers don't know about this. When you hire someone aged 18-29 earning under R7,500/month, SARS reduces your PAYE bill every month. ShiftMate flags qualifying candidates automatically.

Year 1: R1,500–R2,500/mo

For the first 12 qualifying months. Amount depends on the employee's monthly wage — higher savings at lower wage bands.

= Up to R18,000–R30,000 saved in year one

Year 2: R750–R1,250/mo

For months 13–24. Half the year-one rate, still a significant PAYE reduction every month.

= Up to R27,000–R45,000 total over 2 years

We flag ETI candidates

ShiftMate automatically verifies age from SA ID numbers and shows you which candidates qualify.

No paperwork. We do the checking.

The real maths (example: worker earning R4,500/month)

You pay ShiftMate:

1 month trialR500

Permanent hire feeR1,500

TotalR2,000

SARS gives you back (ETI):

Year 1 (~R1,500/mo × 12)R18,000

Year 2 (~R750/mo × 12)R9,000

Total ETI savingsR27,000

You invest R2,000. SARS gives back up to R27,000.

That's a potential 13x return on your hiring cost.

ETI is a sliding scale based on employee remuneration. Example uses the R3,500–R5,500 wage band typical for entry-level roles. Maximum ETI is R2,500/mo (year 1) for employees at the lowest qualifying wage.

ETI programme runs until February 2029. Employer must be registered for PAYE.

Find ETI-Qualifying Candidates

Hiring Options in SA (Real Talk)

Compare your options honestly

Recruitment Agencies

Expensive (R15,000–R50,000). Slow. Still based on interviews.

PNET / Job Boards

Expensive (R3,500–R5,000 for 30 days). Most applicants are unsuitable.

Labour Brokers

10–30% markup on hourly rate + 15–25% of annual salary to hire permanently. They're never really "yours".

ShiftMate

Try-before-you-hire shifts. Pay only for what you can verify.

+ ETI-eligible candidates flagged automatically — save up to R2,500/mo from SARS

Simple Pricing. No Funny Business.

100% free to register, post jobs, and get matched. You only pay when you trial or hire.

FREE FOREVER

Register & Post

Unlimited jobs

FREE

No credit card needed

Create your account

Post unlimited jobs

Get matched to candidates

View profiles & scores

Trial a Candidate

1 month trial

R500

per month, 1 month trial

See them do the actual job

You pay the worker directly

ETI: Get up to R2,500/mo back from SARS

Hire Permanently

Once-off placement fee

R1,500

Only if you decide to hire

Compare to agencies: R15,000+

Save R13,500+

Max total: R2,000 (1 month + hire)

Compare: Recruitment agency placement fee

R15,000–R50,000

vs ShiftMate: From R2,525 total (trial + hire)

Post a Trial Job

VAT included • No subscription • No lock-in