UPDATE: Wage agreement signed between Eskom and unions

Eskom and trade unions NUM, Numsa and Solidarity have signed a new wage agreement guaranteeing workers a 7% wage increase.

Members of the three unions had agreed to accept the wage offer on Tuesday.

The agreement will apply from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023 to all permanent employees at Eskom.

Numsa general-secretary Irvin Jim welcomed the wage agreement.

“As Numsa we are pleased to have finally resolved this round of wage talks, particularly given the difficult circumstances that we faced. The conditions of service which were unilaterally withdrawn, and which caused so much pain to our members, have been restored,” said Jim.

Eskom also said it was pleased to bring the negotiations to an end but added that the agreement will add pressure to the power utility.

“The overall effect of this agreement on the wage bill will be more than R1 billion over the period of the agreement. This of course will be a struggle for Eskom to afford,” it said in a statement.

Eskom also said its system will need time to recover from the strike.

“It is important to note that while the workforce is returning to work, the system will still take some time to recover. As a result of the strike, maintenance work has had to be postponed, and this backlog will take time to clear.”

The agreement ends a weeks-long strike, which – according to Eskom – plunged South Africa into a series of non-stop, rolling blackouts.

Eskom had initially proposed 7% increases – which included R400 housing allowance hikes – but the offer was declined with Numsa first asking for a 15% increase, and later 12%.