By Charmaine Ndlela
National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) members marched in central Johannesburg on Saturday against Eskom’s restructuring, rising electricity prices and growing threats to jobs in energy, mining and industry.
The march, led by NUM General Secretary Mpho Phakedi, moved from Newtown to the Gauteng Premier’s Office, where the union handed over a memorandum of demands.
NUM’s North East region held a parallel march in Polokwane under Deputy General Secretary Phillip Mankge.
The union said it wants urgent government intervention on electricity reform, labour law enforcement, instability in key industries, and the cost-of-living squeeze on workers and households.
NUM opposes Eskom’s unbundling, saying that it opens the way for privatisation.
Eskom, however, says its revised restructuring plan is aimed at improving efficiency, competition and policy certainty.
The National Transmission Company South Africa has already been legally separated, while Eskom’s approved future structure envisages a holding company with separate generation and distribution subsidiaries, and other entities under a revised model.
In its memorandum, NUM said that the unbundling process “threatens job security, weakens collective bargaining structures, and undermines South Africa’s energy sovereignty”.
The union also raised concern about what it said were widespread labour law violations, particularly in the construction and metal sectors, where non-compliance with the Basic Conditions of Employment Act and Labour Relations Act remained a serious problem.
It said the mining sector was under growing strain, with shafts placed under care and maintenance leading to uncertainty, job losses and heightened safety risks.
NUM further flagged instability at major industrial employers, including ArcelorMittal, and criticised “inadequate” government intervention.
It also pointed to the prolonged business rescue process at Cast Products South Africa, citing unpaid wages, job insecurity and poor oversight.
Rising electricity tariffs were another major point of contention, with the union saying that escalating costs are worsening pressure on households already burdened by food inflation, transport costs and interest rates.
Additional grievances included taxation on overtime and retirement withdrawals, delays in the gazetting of collective agreements, and the impact of imports on local industries.
Speaking at the march, Congress of South African Trade Unions Deputy General Secretary Gerald Twala backed NUM’s position.
“We are against the unbundling of Eskom because once government introduces programmes that are supported by capital, you must know they do not serve the interests of the working class,” said Twala.
Twala added that weakening state-owned entities creates a pathway for privatisation, which unions say must be resisted.
The South African National Civic Organisation echoed those concerns.
“Privatisation of state institutions like Eskom threatens job security, fair wages and decent working conditions. For communities, particularly the poor and rural, it means higher electricity costs, reduced access and the erosion of electricity as a basic right,” said Nomonde Shivabu, speaking on behalf of SANCO.
The organisation added that energy should remain a public good.
“We call for solutions that strengthen Eskom as a public entity, improve efficiency and expand access to affordable electricity, rather than handing control to private interests,” Shivabu said.
The march came a day after Eskom said it had concluded a three-year wage agreement with NUM and Solidarity, effective from 1 July 2026. But NUM’s memorandum made clear that its protest extended beyond wages to the structure of the utility, industrial policy, labour protections and the broader economic pressures facing workers.
NUM has given government 14 days to respond to its demands and engage on a concrete action plan.
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