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E32M BONUS FOR EEC EMPLOYEES

10/01/2021 09:31:00 BY WELCOME DLAMINI

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MBABANE – For two years now, employees of the Eswatini Electricity Company have not been receiving their bonus pay.

These are the employees who are affiliated to the Eswatini (Swaziland) Electricity Supply Maintenance and Allied Workers Union (SESMAWU).

According to the EEC’s 2019/2020 annual report, there are 563 permanent employees who are members of this union.

For the past two financial years (2018/2019 and 2019/2020), these employees’ performance bonuses have not been paid out because the union obtained a court order in February 2020 that interdicted the company from paying out the bonuses that were due to them for the 2018/2019 financial year.

The bonuses were to be withheld pending a dispute between the union and EEC that was, and still is, pending before the Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration Commission (CMAC).

This was after SESMAWU argued that the bonuses were being paid using a policy that the union knew nothing about as there had allegedly been no consultation or negotiation prior to its implementation.

In that financial year, the money that was to be paid to the EEC employees in bonuses was E17 397 280.

But because of SESMAWU having launched a challenge against EEC on the policy that was to be used in paying the bonuses, only those who are not affiliated to the union were paid.

An amount of E7 212 470 was, therefore, paid to the non-SESMAWU members as bonuses, leaving a balance of E10 184 810.

The balance was then carried over to the 2019/2020 financial year and added onto an amount of E21 830 773, that has been set aside for the bonuses, which has led to an amount of E32 015 583 currently available for the payment of bonuses.

It is most likely that even in this financial year, only non-SESMAWU members will be paid.

This is because the matter between SESMAWU and EEC has still not been finalised before CMAC and, therefore, the court interdict still stands.

Also before CMAC is Cost of Living Adjustment (CoLA) dispute.

It is stated in the 2019/2020 annual report that pre-arbitration on this matter was concluded and all parties agreed to make submissions to the Commission.

“The matter was postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 outbreak which resulted to the partial lockdown announced by government,” reads the report.

With the bonus provision, EEC says this consists of performance-based bonuses, which are determined with reference to the overall company performance with regard to a set of pre-determined key measures.

The bonuses are paid annually.

reliably measured

EEC also states that the bonus provision can be recognised provided the amount ‘can be reliably measured at the reporting date.

“The company recognises a provision where it is contractually obliged or where there is a past practice that has created a constructive obligation to make bonus payments. Liabilities for bonus plans are expected to be settled within 12 months and are measured at the amounts expected to be paid when they are settled,” the annual report states.

George Maseko, the Secretary General of SESMAWU, said even though he would love to comment on the issue of the bonuses, the company policies did not allow.

He pleaded that the questions be directed to Corporate Communications Manager Khaya Mavuso who would respond after having consulted with him.

“In that way we will be saving ourselves from being found to have violated the policies,” he said.

Mavuso, when reached, said EEC was currently engaging with SESMAWU on the matter of the bonus pay.

“We are in the processes to rebuild relations with the union and we are hopeful that an amicable solution will be found. We are handling all disputes through the internal structure and through

external structures where needs be,” he said.

He said employee benefits and anything relating to their remuneration was considered confidential.

“As such, EEC is not at liberty to discuss such issues in a public domain,” Mavuso stated.

He said EEC is governed by the PEU, which monitors and reviews our financial affairs and budgets, like all other Category A public enterprises on a regular basis.

Meanwhile, SESMAWU, in its legal battle with EEC, contends that it concluded a collective agreement with the company on performance bonus scheme on April 1, 2013.

As per the union, the said bonus agreement was to endure for 24 months unless extended in writing, cancelled by the parties or replaced by a new bonus agreement.

The union’s further contention is that the collective agreement was duly registered by the Industrial Court and was applied even after its expiry by the parties, particularly in the 2016 and 2017 financial years.

During the month of September 2018, EEC is said to have paid out bonuses to all its employees, however, the bonuses were paid in terms of a new bonus policy whose terms were never negotiated with the union or the latter consulted before its implementation.

The union said it raised its concerns with management but this did not yield any results hence it approached CMAC.

EEC submitted a counter argument that the collective agreement sought to be enforced by SESMAWU had lapsed by effluxion of time, as it was neither extended nor a new one made to replace the expired one.

“Furthermore, the terms of the said collective agreement were not incorporated into the individual contracts of employment of the members of SESMAWU,” EEC argued.

In the company’s view, the collective agreement was replaced by operation of law by the bonus policy scheme which was developed pursuant to the promulgation of the Public Enterprises Unit circular relating to bonus payments for public enterprises.

By being a public enterprise, EEC said it was duty bound by Section 10 of the PEU Act to adhere to directives from the PEU.

While EEC had initially thought that SESMAWU wanted to stop the payment of bonuses even to employees and management who were not its members, it was clarified that the union sought an order that would operate for the benefit of its members only.

collective agreement

Having considered all the facts before it, the Industrial Court pointed out that all SESMAWU sought was for CMAC to determine whether the bonus payments should be made under the elapsed collective agreement or under the new bonus policy.

The court’s view was that the EEC would not suffer any prejudice of its withheld payment of bonuses to SESMAWU members pending determination of the arbitration process with CMAC.

The court said in terms of Section 8(4) of the Industrial Relations Act, it may make an order it deemed reasonable which would promote the purpose and objects of the Industrial Relations Act when deciding any matter, in particular, promoting harmonious industrial relations.

“It is the Court’s view that the balance of convenience favours the grant of an interim interdict restraining the EEC from paying out performance bonuses to members of the SESMAWU only pending the finalisation of the arbitration process with the CMAC,” the court said.

EEC was therefore ‘interdicted and restrained from paying out performance bonuses to members of SESMAWU pending finalisation of the arbitration process with CMAC’.