Eskom management and leaders of unions demanding higher wages at the ailing power utility will engage in an extended negotiation process after parties could not reach agreement during the final round of talks in May.
Representatives of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) and Solidarity, together with Eskom negotiators, are set to meet at the central bargaining forum on June 13 and 14 for a final session as they hope to agree on a wage deal.
The cash-strapped power utility started with an initial offer of 3.75%, which it adjusted to 4.5%, before settling on 5.25%. All these offers have been rejected by unions demanding increases of up to 12%.
Meanwhile, Eskom continues to implement persistent load-shedding as it tries to balance constrained electricity supply with high winter demand.
NUM and Numsa, the two largest unions representing the majority of Eskom’s estimated workforce of 42,000, initially demanded increases of 15% but are now demanding 11% and 12%, respectively. Solidarity members demanded an increase of 3% above the average inflation rate, which advanced to 7.1% in March from 7% in February.
Speaking to Business Day on Friday, Eskom spokesperson Daphne Mokwena said that because parties could not find each other during the last and final round of talks in May, the central bargaining forum chair agreed that parties should meet again for two days to try to find common ground.
“If we don’t agree then it will be a CCMA [Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration] issue, but we are very confident that we will agree [on a wage deal],” Mokwena said.
Eskom employees are essential service workers, meaning they cannot go on strike. But this did not stop disgruntled workers from embarking on a wildcat strike that deepened the electricity supply crisis in July 2022, as they demanded higher wages.
The unlawful industrial action saw Eskom management caving in to the workers’ demands by signing a 7% across-the-board wage deal, which added R1bn to Eskom’s salary bill.
NUM chief negotiator Olehile Kgware told Business Day on Friday that the Cosatu affiliate was still demanding an 11% wage increase.
“We are hoping that Eskom will table a sound, reasonable offer when we meet again on June 13 and June 14, which we can sell to our members. Our members are highly agitated ... as they are struggling to keep up with the rising cost of living,” Kgware said.
“We are saying to Eskom: ‘Consider the employees’ demands, you really have to give them want they want’. We are hopeful this matter won’t end up as a dispute with the CCMA as happened in 2022. A dispute is not a peaceful process; we don’t want that situation [again]. Look what happened last year. We are patient with Eskom,” he said.
The NUM held its national shop stewards’ council meeting on Thursday. An official who attended told Business Day that “workers are angry and will from [June 8] be holding pickets across all power stations in the country” in support of their wage demands.
Load-shedding blame
“They take exception that they are being blamed for load-shedding. They are saying enough is enough. So this time around they are ready to be blamed for what will unfold. If Eskom’s doesn’t accede to our demands, I can tell you now it’s going to be a problem.”
Numsa spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said: “We won’t pre-empt the outcome of the final round; we think that we are going to find one another. We are still at 12%. We will give new details after June 13.”
Solidarity deputy general secretary Helgard Cronje said union members had revised their wage demand of 10.1% down to 9.5% and hoped parties could find each other in their next meeting.
Eskom has debt of more than R420bn, and the government has committed to provide it with debt relief of R254bn over three years. The National Treasury has said one of the conditions of the debt relief plan is that Eskom may not implement remuneration adjustments that “negatively affect its overall financial position and sustainability” over the three-year debt relief period.
The conditions were dismissed as “reckless” by the unions.
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