Wage talks between Eskom, unions deadlock
Wage talks between Eskom and several labour unions have collapsed.
This comes after the struggling power utility and the unions could not reach an agreement at the Central Bargaining Forum.
The National Union of Mineworkers (Num), the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), and Solidarity have rejected the SOE's 1.5% salary increase and placed demands for basic salary increases of 10%, 12% and 9,5% respectively.
Eskom's spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha says the power utility doesn't have the financial muscle to pay for the proposed benefits and salary increases.
READ: Load shedding to dump the rest of the week in the dark
"Eskom can confirm that it has today declared a dispute as it has not been able to reach an agreement in the Central Bargaining Forum wage negotiations with the three recognised trade unions.
"Eskom, which relies on taxpayer cash bailouts to maintain its going concern status, has clearly demonstrated these demands are unaffordable," Mantshantsha reiterates.
This is the third time negotiations have failed.
The power utility has previously warned that the supply of power will be negatively affected if talks deadlock and workers decided to go on strike.
This while South Africans are in for a dark and cold week as Stage 2 load shedding is set to persist until Friday.
