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Level Four: Permitted Retail and Service Operations; and Personal Movement

25 April 2020

All COVID-19 health and safety protocols must be followed at all times, including observance of guidelines for social distancing, sanitation and hygiene, and use of appropriate personal protective equipment, like cloth face masks, as determined by the National Department of Health.

People may travel to perform and acquire services only where such services cannot be provided from the safety of one’s home.

A reference to a permitted level of employment must take into account the necessary social distancing guidelines as per the National Department of Health.

In the document, when moving between levels, the green text means additions or changes from the prior level. For example, Level 4 adds forestry, logging and related services to Agriculture. It is now market in green in Level 4.

  • Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing:
    • All agriculture, hunting, forestry, fishing and related services, including the
      export of agricultural products permitted
  • Electricity, gas and water supply:
    • All electricity, gas and water supply
  • Manufacturing:
    • Manufacture of retail products permitted to be sold under Level Four, and
      all input products, permitted scaling up to full employment, except where
      otherwise indicated;
    • Manufacture of paper and paper products, excluding stationery,
      permitted scaling up to full employment;
    • Manufacture of packaging, including glass, plastic bottles and containers,
      permitted scaling up to full employment;
    • Petroleum smelters, refineries and furnaces, permitted scaling up to full
      employment;
    • Manufacture of winter clothing, bedding and heaters (and all inputs
      required) permitted, commencing at 25% and scaling up to 50%
      employment;
    • Automotive manufacturing, including components, scaling up in phases to
      50% employment;
    • Stationery production, scaling up in phases to 50% employment;
    • Cement, other construction material, and hardware, scaling up in phases
      to 50% employment;
    • All other manufacturing, scaling up to 20% employment;
  • Construction and related services (inc. tradespeople):
    • Civil engineering for public works projects (including water, energy,
      sanitation);
    • Critical public works construction;
    • Road and bridge projects;
    • Other public works civil engineering projects; and
    • Critical maintenance and repairs;
  • Wholesale and retail trade, covering stores, spaza shops, eCommerce and
    informal traders:

    • Any food product, including non-alcoholic beverages and animal food;
    • The sale of hot cooked food, only for home delivery;
    • Toilet Paper, sanitary pads, sanitary tampons, condoms;
    • Hand sanitiser, disinfectants, soap, alcohol for industrial use, household
      cleaning products, and personal protective equipment;
    • Products for the care of babies and toddlers;
    • Personal toiletries, including haircare, body and face care products, rollons,
      deodorants, dental care products;
    • Medical and Hospital Supplies, medicine, equipment and personal
      protective equipment;
    • Fuel and lighting, including coal, wood, paraffin and gas;
    • Airtime and electricity
    • Hardware, components and supplies required by any qualified
      tradespersons solely for the purpose of emergency repairs at residential
      homes;
    • Hardware, components and supplies required by any entity engaged in
      the provision of essential services for any project related to the provision of
      water, electricity or other essential services;
    • Components for vehicles undergoing emergency repairs where such
      vehicle is used by a person engaged in essential services work;
    • Chemicals, packaging and ancillary products used in the production of
      any these products;
    • Textiles required to produce face masks, and other personal protective
      equipment;
    • Winter clothing, bedding and heaters;
    • Children’s clothing;
    • Stationery and educational books;
    • Tobacco products;
    • Personal ICT equipment including computers, mobile telephones and other
      home office equipment;
    • No sale of liquor permitted
  • Information and communication services:
    • All telecommunication services and infrastructure;
    • Information and Communication Technology services for all private and
      business customers;
    • Postal services and courier services related to transport of medical
      products
  • Media and entertainment services:
    • Online services;
    • Productions for local broadcast; and live streaming in support of COVID-19
      subject to directions; and
    • Newspapers and broadcasting;
  • Financial and business services:
    • Employees should work from home where possible;
    • Call centres, for local and all international markets, may operate subject to
      directions issues by the relevant cabinet members;
    • Essential financial services may operate subject to directions issues by the
      relevant cabinet member;
    • Private security services may operate;
    • Implementation of payroll systems;
    • Rental of motor vehicles, machinery and equipment, and of personal and
      household goods to support other Level Four services;
    • Other professional services may operate only where work-from-home is not
      possible, and only to support other Level Four services;
  • Accommodation and food service activities:
    • Accommodation not permitted, except for quarantine and essential
      services;
    • Restaurants only for food delivery services (9am-8pm) and subject to
      curfew (no sit down or pick-up allowed);
  • Transport, storage and communication services:
    • Ocean and air transport permitted only for the shipment of cargo;
    • Public rail, minibus taxi and bus services will resume at levels and on terms
      as will be set out in Directions, based on the progressive increase in
      commuter numbers during the various phases;
    • E-hailing services subject to restrictions on capacity and times, and for
      permitted activities only; and
    • Transport and logistics in respect of specified cargo, and permitted retail
      goods to neighbouring countries, which shall include all goods imported
      via SA ports of entry, for re-export to neighbouring countries;
    • Essential imported goods will be prioritised through ports of entry and for
      transport and handling to final users. Directions will be issued in respect of
      other goods
  • Mining and quarrying:
    • Coal production for Eskom scaling up to full employment;
    • Open-cast mining scaling up to full employment; and
    • All other mining starting in batches scaling up towards 50% employment
  • Repair and related emergency services:
    • Tow trucks and vehicle recovery services;
    • Emergency repair work, including plumbers, electricians, locksmiths,
      glaziers, roof repair work;
    • Emergency automobile repairs for all persons
  • Supply Chains:
    • Production, manufacturing, supply, logistics, transport, delivery, critical
      maintenance and repair in relation to the rendering of permitted services
      including components and equipment;
    • All workplaces or premises must have care and maintenance that is
      essential to the prevention of the destruction or significant impairment of
      working areas, plant, machinery or inventory, or to permit orderly wind
      down arrangements, on such conditions as may be issued by means of
      directions by the relevant cabinet members
  • Private households employment:
    • Permitted to support all Level 4 personnel and live-in staff
  • Public administration, government services and other arms of the state:
    • Only essential government and administration services may operate,
      including:

      • Disaster management services;
      • Licensing, permitting and deeds offices; birth and death certificates,
        replacement identification documents;
      • Any other service designated by the Executive Authority, HODs,
        Heads of Courts, and Heads of other Chapter 9 Institutions
      • Essential municipal services;
      • Services related to the essential functioning of courts;
      • Essential SARS services defined by the Commissioner of SARS;
      • Police, peace officers, traffic officers, military medical personnel and
        soldiers, correctional services officials and traffic management
        services;
      • Services rendered by the Executive, members of Parliament,
        Members of the Provincial Legislature, Members of Local Councils,
        the Judiciary, traditional leaders and National Office Bearers of
        Political Parties represented in Parliament;
      • Commissioners of the South African Human Rights Commission,
        Gender Commission, the Commission for the Promotion and
        Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic
        Communities, the Public Protector and Deputy Public Protector and
        the Independent Electoral Commission
  • Health, social and personal services:
    • Medical and veterinary services permitted;
    • Cleaning, sanitation, pest control, sewerage, waste and refuse removal
      services;
    • Recycling of glass, paper & metal inc informal recyclers permitted at 50%
      capacity;
    • All Social work, counselling, care and relief activities permitted
    • Wildlife Management, Antipoaching, Animal Care and Veterinary services;
    • Funeral and cremation services, including mortuaries services and the
      transportation of mortal remains;
    • Trade union essential staff for workers covered by Level 4, subject to
      Directions
  • Education services:
    • Permitted on dates and schedule set out separately
  • Personal Movement:
    • Interprovincial travel is not permitted except to return to work with proof of
      employment, in exceptional circumstances such as funerals (with
      approval) or essential services.
    • Stay at home, other than essential travel for work and to purchase essential
      goods.
    • No recreational travel or to meet friends or family.
    • People can exercise under strict public health conditions, subject to
      directions, which will exclude organised activities, recreational facilities,
      and gyms
    • Mandatory use of cloth masks (including home-made ones to cover nose
      and mask) and ensure hand hygiene when in public and at workplace.
    • Emergencies for medical reasons.
    • Those who have an exemption to travel for funerals
    • South Africans returning home and foreign nationals leaving South Africa
    • Elderly and persons with co-morbidities are encouraged to self-isolate and
      only leave home for exceptional reasons.
    • Social distancing (2m away from other persons) to be applied in public
      when, shopping, visiting health facilities (pharmacies, clinics etc),
    • Social distancing when using public and private transport, as per transport
      guidelines
    • All public gatherings are prohibited.
    • Stores to ensure that there is temperature screening of patrons, hand
      sanitisers available and measures to facilitate social distancing. Where the
      number of customers cannot be accommodated at once then measures
      such a ticket system and defined limit of time in the store per customer
      should be implemented instead of the physical queuing of customers.
    • Curfews will be implemented between 8pm and 5am