Eskom workers want 18%, mull strike

[sox63]

But lets be reasonable about this. 10 000 claimed employees want 18% increase. If each one gets paid ave of R 3000, that's R30,000,000 a month into salaries. 18% of that is R5,400,000 extra a MONTH. Thats an extra 64 Million a year (at least) into salaries into a company already asking for bailouts.

That's a big ask right now. A better idea would be about 8% increase, and throw some benefits for employees such as an extra day leave a year. We really can't afford eskom leveraging this as an excuse for more increases.

Now that you have looked at it from the employers perspective, take into consideration the employee, who had no increase last year, and with inflation at 5-6% last year, they wages no longer meet their needs now. And if employers grant them 8% increase like you suggested, they are still going to have to deal with inflation THIS year as well, probably 5%.

I'm no economics expert, but I would guess that they would be 2-4% shy of what they need to maintain their lifestyle.

 

[Kosmik]

Now that you have looked at it from the employers perspective, take into consideration the employee, who had no increase last year, and with inflation at 5-6% last year, they wages no longer meet their needs now. And if employers grant them 8% increase like you suggested, they are still going to have to deal with inflation THIS year as well, probably 5%.

I'm no economics expert, but I would guess that they would be 2-4% shy of what they need to maintain their lifestyle.

If the trough is empty , it's empty. Scream and toi-toi all you want but when there's no money, there is just no money.

 

[Frankie]

The high cost of Eskum's window dressing.

Yes, Rooster (aka Kill-A-Whiety) troll, Eskum do use private contractors, as a work-around for BEE/AA.
They employ foreigners, some blacks from the US and a whites from the EU (mainly UK) in positions that are earmarked AA posts, while still paying a full compliment of incompetent staff.

They were in the news recently trying to deport the black US engineers that blew the whistle on this hiring of contractors scam.

Eskum through plain incompetence did not plan for the expansion of the grid inline with the free power to all and sundry, and the stupid contracts selling power below cost to neighbouring comrades, and even supplying these comrades while load shedding South Africans.

In addition, the generating capacity went backwards due to lack of equipment maintenance and mismanagement of fuel supplies, and the classic "sabotage" at Koeberg (dumb fsks left a bolt in the generator).

 

[orin76]

If the trough is empty , it's empty. Scream and toi-toi all you want but when there's no money, there is just no money.

The problem is convincing unions that the trough is really empty. We live in a very unequal society and it's very difficult for the guy at the bottom earning 3K/month to appreciate that the company has no money when senior management have just bought themselves new cars/houses/boats etc.Your average worker doesn't appreciate that some people just invest their money better than others. Most wealth inequalities are attributed to bonuses or pay increases.

 

[ToxicBunny]

18%?

Fscking hell, I would LOVE an increase like that.

 

[LottaFun]

The soccer world cup is the biggest blackmailing tool around. If anybody strikes now, they will get what they want. The Eskom guys will get it, The railway guys will get it. Who else is on strike? Me but I'm just one so I will implement a silent go-slow strike.

Yes and I would also like an IT union.