The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is planning to march to Luthuli House – ANC’s headquarters – claiming that black people are allegedly overlooked for senior positions at Eskom.
The mineworkers union is also calling on the government to stop the unbundling of Eskom, saying the planned unbundling was “a precursor to privatisation”.
NUM Acting General Secretary, William Mabapa, said they have seen SOEs being privatised without proper consultation, saying the labour union was against the unbundling of Eskom.
Mabapa said, they believed that the vertically integrated structure of Eskom was still relevant.
“On the Eskom implementation of the 1.5% and unilateral change in conditions of employment, the NUM views this as a declaration of war towards our members.
“This unilateral implementation of changes in conditions of service, is not only unlawful, but also provocative.
“The NUM believes that the arbitration, which is taking place on the weeks of the 18th and 25th October 2021, will hold positive results in favour of our members,” Mabapa said.
He alleged that Eskom was also in the process of attacking their leaders, saying their leaders at the regional and national levels were being unnecessarily suspended and charged.
“We have also witnessed black leaders being replaced by white leaders in Eskom. Some black leaders are suspended without any charges. We call on the ANC government to intervene and fix the leadership crisis in Eskom.
“The recent rhetoric statement by the Eskom GCEO on the closing of coal power stations, is unfortunate. As much as we support clean energy, as the NUM, we still believe that the transition happens without compromising the economy, workers and the communities around the coal power station. We condemn these reckless statements from the GCEO of Eskom,” Mabapa said.
He said, due to the allegations set of accusations against Eskom, his union has resolved to march to the ANC’s headquarters (Luthuli House) to hand over a memorandum.
“We will also push for an urgent meeting with Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on Eskom matters,” he said.
A date for the march to Luthuli House is yet to be determined.
Political Bureau