But the salary payment deal was then rapidly re-negotiated on Thursday last week – only to be undermined since then by failed administrative measures which included the Sheriff not being found to facilitate the agreed process, according to ELM.
Now ELM employees, councillors and service providers must wait till Monday to see when and if if they get paid, says an internal ELM memo released over the weekend.
Anger against especially Eskom and Rand Water attachments of ELM bank accounts has reached boiling with increasing calls for mass action against the two utilities, whilst employees have also vented anger against the municipality itself.
Salary delays have repeatedly occurred since December, but the present delay is the longest on record – since 25th May.
This is the picture of chaos and hardship emerging at the expense of municipal employees and Councillors – and many municipal service providers who pump millions into the regional economy through their own salaries.
The ELM memo apologised profusely for the present situation, saying a meeting was held with Rand Water last Thursday after the water utility had reneged on an agreement on salary payments from an attached account.
“On Thursday 25 May the Municipality met with Rand Water to discuss a way forward after they withdrew their decision to uplift the attachment on the municipal bank account…
“The Sheriff was not available to respond to the Rand Water instruction as anticipated and as a result employee salaries will be paid on Monday 29 May after the Sheriff has instructed the bank to uplift the account attachment,”” said the memo.
Rand Water did not respond to requests for comment on the memo, despite a spokesperson on Saturday saying the attachment had in fact been uplifted.
ELM owes Eskom more than R6 billion and Rand Water more than R1 billion and both bulk utilities have bank attachment orders on several municipal bank accounts from which salary payments must be made.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and ELM Executive Mayor Sipho Radebe facitated deals with both Eskom and Rand Water well before last week’s payday.
The SA Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) has already demanded that both Eskom and Rand Water cease attaching municipal bank accounts, warning of the huge negative impacts on service delivery and the Emfuleni economy if salaries cannot be paid.
