d Solidarity, all representing Eskom workers, to declare a dispute with the country’s electricity parastatal which is offering a 6 percent increase instead of the 12 percent that the employees are demanding.
There are already fears in South Africa that the industrial action, which Eskom employees have scheduled for July 4 if their demands are not met, could result in a blackout locally and in neighbouring countries that rely on the power utility.
“Eskom stands on the threshold of an expansion of its electricity-generating capacity. Expansion plans to the tune of R150-billion are in the pipeline. To achieve this, they expect workers to sacrifice their salaries. Maximum service must be complemented by minimum wages, and a 6 percent wage offer sends the workers a message that they are worthless. For the past 13 years, workers haven’t benefited from Eskom’s financial growth, while the top directors and managers have been amassing over R2-million in bonuses annually,” said a spokesman for the aggrieved employees.
Eskom recently threatened to pull the plug on countries that import electricity from the company as it is battling to meet demand by the South African market.
“This (cutting supplies to neighbouring countries) is not something new. We have done it in the past when faced with domestic problems,” said spokesperson Fani Zulu.Nonetheless, it is Zimbabwe, bedevilled by an acute shortage of power for several years, which is likely to suffer the most.
Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Holdings) is in the meantime failing to settle debts to foreign suppliers while deals with Far East nations to help Zimbabwe resolve its power crisis are yet to see the light of day. – CAJ News
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