Frequently asked questions

Email worked badly for our clients' frontline teams: forgotten usernames and passwords, lockouts after failed attempts, payslips bouncing or landing in junk. Each one became a query for payroll. Jem delivers payslips on WhatsApp, the channel your people already use, with delivery and read tracking, and queries drop to near zero.

SMS can't deliver a payslip in a BCEA-compliant format, and it's hard to track: employees change numbers often and you never know what arrived. Jem tracks when every communication was received and read. When a number changes, the employee re-authenticates on the chatbot and the system updates automatically.

Most of our clients came from something: an ESS portal nobody logged into, a company app that got deleted, untracked SMS. The difference with Jem is adoption. Because Jem lives on WhatsApp, employers see 90% adoption within weeks. When WastePlan switched to a competitor, their employees rejected it and Jem was back within six weeks. We handle the switch.

Yes. Jem works with all payroll systems as a simple add-on, so payslips arrive on WhatsApp with no changes to your existing payroll.

Yes. Jem integrates with Sage, PaySpace, SimplePay, SAP, and Xero via Flowgear. Chat to our team about your integration needs.

After a signed quote, our client experience team runs a 30-minute onboarding call to walk you through the Jem Hub. The last step is sending us your employee data. Most clients are live within two business days, with about two hours of input from you.

A payslip can only be delivered to an employee's personal phone, and they must confirm their name, surname and ID number before they can open it.

Upload payslips to the Jem Hub, or email them to your dedicated Customer Success Manager. Jem's software matches each payslip to the right employee by reading the ID number on the PDF against their profile.

You get secure access to the Jem Hub to send announcements, polls and surveys, segmented by branch, region or department. Employees receive and respond on the Jem WhatsApp chatbot, and you can see exactly what landed.

Jem is ISO 27001 certified, with security monitored 24/7 via Sprinto and data hosted on Google Cloud with industry-standard encryption. We're fully POPIA compliant, employees self-authenticate with two factors on first use, and data is never shared with third parties.

Upload leave balances to the Hub. Employees view their balance and submit requests on WhatsApp, and approvals are tracked in one place.

On WhatsApp, employees see their available balance, request an advance and contact support. Jem pays the amount directly into the employee's bank account from Jem's own funds, so there's no impact on your cash flow. At the end of the pay cycle you receive a reconciliation with a deduction sheet and an invoice: you pay Jem on your normal pay run, and the amounts come off the employee's payslip. Employees pay a small fee per withdrawal (R6 + 2% same-day, R25 + 2% instant); the employer pays nothing.

Employees can only withdraw money already owed to them, and never more than 25% of it, so the remaining balance acts as a buffer. We also work with your payroll team to flag abscondments early, fitting your existing process.

Per deskless worker, tailored to your workforce size and the plan you choose. Exact per-worker figures are confirmed with our team when you book a demo.

Yes. On the Comprehensive plan the employee benefits suite, including Earned Wage Access, comes at zero cost to the employer.

Yes. Start on Standard for HR, comms and the Jem Hub, and move to Comprehensive to add the benefits suite whenever you're ready.

Comprehensive onboarding, enterprise-grade security (ISO 27001, POPIA), a 99.98% uptime SLA, and access to our Employee Care Centre.

Yes. Visit our Trust Centre at trust.jemhr.com for the certificate, compliance status and full security documentation.

Never. We process data solely to deliver our service.

We have documented processes for data subject requests (access, correction, deletion), outlined in our DPA and initiated through admin controls or support.

Yes. We provide security questionnaire responses, architecture overviews, penetration test summaries and policy documentation under NDA. Contact our security team via the Trust Centre at trust.jemhr.com.

We maintain a formal incident response plan with documented procedures, 24/7 monitoring and contractual notification timelines. Our business continuity plan is tested regularly.

WhatsApp provides end-to-end encryption between sender and recipient. Jem adds controls around consent, data minimisation and platform compliance on top of that native encryption.

No. Once your Jem profile is active, your payslip arrives on WhatsApp.

Payslips, leave and announcements are free. For earned wage access, a same-day withdrawal costs R6 plus 2% of the amount; an instant advance costs R25 plus 2%.

No. Jem gives you access to some of the salary you've already earned, before payday. It's your money, not a loan.

The account your employer pays your salary into.

Standard payments take up to 1 business day. Instant payments take a few hours.

Your ID number.

Once you've switched your number on WhatsApp, send "Hi" to the Jem chatbot on 079 244 7062 and follow the prompts.

Yes. Use our USSD line *120*20030# (40c per 20 seconds) or call customer support on 087 058 0944.

Visit the support hub for everything on networks, data, insurance, warranties and replacements.