Emfuleni employees run amok over unpaid salaries
Angry workers descended on Vanderbijlpark's town centre today because they have not received their salaries.
VANDERBIJLPARK.– Tensions boiled over on Tuesday when hundreds of furious Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) employees rampaged after their salaries were unpaid.
Angry employees turned the town into a warzone with garbage scattered all over, ELM head offices were barricaded with burning tires, rocks, and debris.
The unrest erupted following Eskom’s shocking move to seize all four of ELM’s bank accounts in a desperate bid to recover a whopping R8b debt owed by the municipality.
The massive power utility, known for taking no prisoners, had enough of the repeated failures to settle the bill under the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) 124 Debt Relief Programme.
Employees, fed up with excuses, decided to take matters into their own hands. Fearing victimisation, several exhausted employees poured out their frustrations, revealing a pattern of salary delays and empty promises from the municipality.
“We are tired of working for free while ELM mishandles our money. This is not what we signed up for,” said one employee.
As the chaos unfolded, members of the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) swooped in solidarity with the disgruntled staff.
SAMWU Regional Chairperson Edward Skhuphela said: “We are always here to discuss the way forward on resolutions of the problem of non-payment of salaries.
“We haven’t found the management of ELM, however, they said (telephonically) they are waiting for a court judgment and also informed us that Eskom did not respond to the affidavit the municipality submitted. We are not interested in anything else except the payment of salaries.”