LISTEN | Gordhan hopes Eskom back to normal on Wednesday, blames intimidation for stage 6 load-shedding

Public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan on Tuesday said staff from Eskom will restore the power utility to “some level of normality” after the resolution of an unprotected strike which began on June 22.

He said the industrial action has led to Eskom taking the country to level 6 load-shedding from Tuesday afternoon.

Gordhan said since the winter season started, there has been big demand for electricity  and the strike meant that at many power stations up to  90% of staff could not work because of intimidation. This affected the functioning of those stations.

“This intimidation is completely unacceptable.”

Gordhan said he had been given an assurance that everything would be done to bring normality.

“As a result of consultations between some of the unions and a management team at Eskom earlier today, an agreement was reached on a wage settlement that both parties will commit to in due course.

“Agreement was also reached that the unions which were primarily involved in these activities will request their members to return to work tomorrow.”

Gordhan said what he heard was over the past week, a number of units at each power stations had been seriously affected. He said the cleanup operation will start Wednesday and where maintenance of units had been interrupted, activities would restart.

“More units will come online that had  not been attended to. Though Eskom is saying from 4pm, level 6 load-shedding will occur, I am hoping that all of us who constitute the Eskom community will work hard to avoid level 6 tomorrow. 

“That depends on the co-operation we get from all stakeholders,” Gordhan said.

In a statement on Tuesday, the National Union of Mineworkers and the National Union of Metalworkers of  SA said a meeting at Eskom on Tuesday morning had registered considerable progress in that a new offer will be tabled at the central bargaining forum (CBF) on Friday.

“Given that Eskom has finally agreed to return to the negotiating table and there is a new offer which will be formally presented on Friday in the CBF, NUM and Numsa leadership are calling on our members at Eskom to give the process of negotiation a chance,” the unions said.

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