Wage negotiations are set to start at embattled power utility Eskom next week, its biggest union the National Union of Metalworkers (NUM) confirmed on Friday.

Talks are set to for the 19, 20 and 21 April at Cedarwoods in Sandton, Johannesburg.

All unions organising in Eskom – namely NUM, the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) and Solidarity – have officially submitted their wage demands, NUM said. This comes as the power utility has implemented loadshedding nearly every day in 2023.

This year's wage talks follow an impasse in 2022 that culminated in an unprotected strike which dealt a heavy blow to Eskom's already fragile capacity to generate electricity. The State-owned power utility ultimately reached a 7% wage increase agreement with unions after a week of protests and escalating loadshedding. 

NUM – which this year wants a 15% salary increase across the board – wants the "apartheid wage gap finalised as per agreement" and gave further details of its other demands in a statement on Friday. In addition to the salary bump, NUM wants the reinstatement of performance bonuses, as well as the inclusion of housing allowances, cellphone and electricity allowances.

Solidarity wants a pay increase of 3 percentage points above the average inflation rate (7%), Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

Numsa declined to comment.

In addition to the salary bump, NUM – which has about 14 000 members at Eskom – wants the housing allowance to be raised to R7 000 and for employees to be allowed to buy houses anywhere in the country.   

It further wants the company contribution to medical aid to shift to 80%, with a 20% contribution by employees, as well as a standard cellphone allowance of R1 000 plus a R1 500 electricity allowance for Eskom workers.

Furthermore, it wants a once-off R1 500 essential worker or danger allowance, as well as a separate voltage work allowance on a sliding scale; a R5 000 rural allowance; a 15% increase on all other conditions-of-service allowances; and a performance bonus set at 25% of annual salary.

The union also wants Eskom's bursary scheme – known internally as the Jan H Smith scheme – to increase to R20 000 per child.

Its other demands include:

• A R10 000 vehicle allowance for all employees that qualify for Eskom's so-called vehicle X-scheme;
• A R1 000 truck driver allowance;
• For certain lower salary scales to be scrapped altogether and for all employees to be shifted to a different level;
• For all trainees to be absorbed into Eskom;
• Four weeks of paternity leave without impacting contingency leave;
• Pay day to move to Friday if the 26th of the month falls on a Sunday;
• And for anyone retiring at 60 to leave with no penalties.

News24 reached out to Eskom on Friday afternoon to ask what contingency plans were in place for the duration of the wage talks but did not immediately receive a response.