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IOL News reports that the SA African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) in Tshwane says the non‑payment of salary increases for municipal workers since 2021 is to blame for the growing unpaid municipal bills now faced by almost 9,000 employees.
This follows a recent council report showing that the number of municipal employees who owe the city increased from 8,759 in July 2024 to 8,820 in July 2025, with R28.88 million collectively owed. The number of councillors who are in arrears rose from 121 to 131 in the same period, with R1.7 million collectively owed. Samwu regional secretary Donald Monakisi said the outstanding 3.5% and 5.4% salary increases for 2021/22 and 2023/24, respectively, might be among the reasons many municipal workers could not keep up with their water and electricity accounts. He said the union had repeatedly shared its concerns regarding the workers’ economic hardships with the employer.
Monakisi said the workers were feeling the pinch because any debt they owed the city was being deducted from their salaries without consent. “They have access to your salary and don’t even ask you to make arrangements. At month‑end, they just deduct the money. We are at the mercy of the employer – if you owe R4,000 they just take it,” he said. The union recently threatened to disrupt the G20 Summit in Johannesburg in November, saying it would be a protest against Tshwane’s move to exempt itself from the collective‑bargaining agreement of the 3.5% and 5.4% salary increases.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Rapula Moatshe at IOL News
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