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- Eskom Rotek Industries workers will begin protesting against the use of labor intermediaries in the division starting Tuesday.
- The organizer of the protest, Timothy Kgokong, said the newly appointed labor intermediaries have not paid the full salaries of the employees.
- Eskom spokesman Sikonathi Mantshantsha said that the complaints underscoring the protest are before the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.
Eskom confirmed Monday that it is aware that Eskom Rotek Industries workers will begin protesting against the use of labor intermediaries at the division starting Tuesday morning.
In question, a protest organizer said, was the decision to eliminate companies that served as labor intermediaries. Rotek Industries is a power maintenance support division at Eskom, specializing in bulk materials, construction, logistics, turbo generation, as well as transformer and switchgear services.
The protest organizer and coordinator of the Land Force of the Fighters for Economic Freedom in the Nkangala region, Timothy Kgokong, said that the newly appointed labor intermediaries have not paid the salaries of the employees.
“Those people in Rotek have labor intermediaries, while they are a division of Eskom. These people have not received payments for three months. Wages have deteriorated. The old labor intermediaries were eliminated and the new ones do not pay workers,” he said Kgokong. .
Eskom spokesman Sikonathi Mantshantsha said Eskom’s leadership was aware of the planned protests at Eskom Rotek, and said that the complaints underlining the protest were the subject of investigations in the Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration Commission.
“Eskom is aware of the planned protest action and we have implemented measures to minimize any impediments to production and the issues that protesters, mostly contractors and temporary Rotek employees, are before the CCMA where Eskom is working to achieve a resolution, “said Mantshantsha.
Kgokong said that while Eskom Rotek Industries workers know that Eskom is plagued with financial problems, the energy company owes the workers to name companies that can do this job correctly or end job brokering.
“I am one of those who agrees to go through the CCMA. This matter is not from yesterday. We ask that it be investigated and the cases have not been traced. Unions and other labor movements raised concerns with Rotek who referred it to the CCMA and we cannot wait more, “Kgokong said.
While the National Union of Mineworkers could not be reached for comment, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa said they are not involved in the protest and Kgokong said the protest was not organized by or affiliated with any union.
