SA trade unions unite to debate fresh Eskom wage hike offer
By Staff Reporter
A number of South Africa’s trade unions have formed a united front to consider whether to accept or reject the state-owned power utility, Eskom’s 4.7 per cent wage increase offer for 2018.
In a joint statement issued by the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), the two trade unions and Solidarity stated that the public were anxiously waiting for the final outcome of the wage talks at Eskom because the consequences would be disastrous in the event of failure.
The unions also celebrated the unity exhibited by the labour movement in the Eskom wage talks, adding that it was only by uniting that they can effectively fight for a deal that would benefit all workers at Eskom.
“All recognised trade unions at Eskom, the National Union of Mineworkers, (NUM), the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), and Solidarity met with Eskom management through the Central Bargaining Forum to re-start wage talks today,” the statement reads. “Eskom is offering a four-year wage deal with a guaranteed increase based on inflation. For the year 2018 the offer is 4.7%, and an inflation based increase every year thereafter for the next four years. All other demands which have been submitted remain unaltered.”
NUM, NUMSA and Solidarity indicated that Eskom’s proposal was that all other demands regarding an increase in housing allowance; payment of performance bonus and insourcing and all other benefits would not be improved and remain unchanged.
“All unions have received the offer and are debating it. We will give a joint response in the morning to Eskom management when the second day of wage talks resume on Wednesday. We cannot confirm at this time what our response to the offer is until we have communicated it to Eskom,” the statement read in part. “At the meeting with Public Enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan last Friday we called for a high-powered delegation with the power and capacity to take decisions. We are disappointed that Eskom came to these wage talks without the presence of some board members or the presence of the Group CEO Phakamani Hadebe.”
This was, the unions argued, one of the fundamental conditions of the opening of wage talks.
“We want to engage but we cannot engage with people who do not have the power to take decisions. We demand the presence of the GCE at the meetings. The public is extremely anxious about the outcome of the talks because if they fail, it would have disastrous consequences for all of us,” they stated. ”
“We demand the presence of a powered delegation in line with the commitment which was made to the minister by Eskom on Friday. We call on the top management of the SOE to take these talks seriously in order to ensure that we can resolve the impasse as soon as possible. We celebrate the unity of unions in this process. It is only in acting in unison that we can fight effectively to secure an agreement which will benefit all workers at Eskom. We salute our members for remaining resolute and for displaying militant discipline.”
The joint statement was signed by NUM and NUMSA national spokespersons Livuwani Mammburu and Phakamile Hlubi-Majola respectively.
