The work of the Chair in the Creation of Decent Work and Sustainable Livelihoods places human beings at the centre of how we think about work, addressing pressing societal challenges such as unemployment, inequality and inadequate pay through research that delivers tangible social and economic impact. Based in the School of Management Studies, the Chairholder has become an academic authority on living wages and decent work in South Africa. Through the Chair, the Living Wage South Africa Network, a registered non-profit organisation, has been established to connect small business owners, remuneration experts, larger corporations and researchers in a shared effort to advance fair and sustainable employment and publishes South Africa’s living wage threshold annually. 

The underlying research,  the National Living Wage Study, lies at the heart of the Chair's work. It is an ongoing programme of research that has run multiple national cycles with thousands of participants and now provides the most robust empirical basis for understanding what a living wage looks like in South Africa. The research has translated directly into practice, with several financial corporations implementing living wage amounts that align precisely with the findings, and a growing number of small, medium and large businesses approaching the Chair for guidance.