Eskom wants to pay employees R1.8 billion in performance bonuses, according to court papers filed by the National Energy Regulator of SA.
The debt-laden power utility, which resumed power cuts on Saturday after a conveyor-belt failure at Medupi, has been described by Goldman Sachs as the biggest threat to South Africa’s economy, according to Bloomberg.
Eskom’s debt amounts to a massive R450 billion, and the utility has been described as being overstaffed by 66%.
In August, Eskom’s senior managers demanded a pay hike and took Eskom to the Council for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) because they received no salary increases.
There are approximately 200 managers in this group, earning between R1.5 million and R3 million a year. They were seeking a 4.7% increase.
Eskom’s 6 500 middle managers were also unhappy with the 7.5% increase given to non-managerial employees and want to be put into the same bargaining unit as those employees. They earn between R700 000 and R2 million.
Observers wonder if the arrival of new Eskom CEO André de Ruyter this month will herald a private-sector approach to tailoring pay increases to financial conditions.