Joburg Water workers demand performance bonuses while taps run dry

While widespread water outages have plagued the city of Johannesburg for weeks, Johannesburg Water workers have embarked on a go-slow over bonuses. 

Johannesburg Water confirmed in a statement on 10 February that workers in the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) began a strike on Friday, 6 February.

The utility said that the strike action was undertaken without the workers following the required legal procedures. As the strike is unprotected due to this, workers participating in the go-slow will receive no pay. 

SAMWU told the Daily Maverick that the dispute is based on Joburg Water changing the way it pays bonuses from a performance-based model to a discretion-based system.

“The employer has deducted five basis points from the scoring that members got, which meant that they would receive a lesser amount than the money they’ve seen when they were doing performance reviews with their line managers,” SAMWU regional chairperson Lebogang Ndawo said. 

Workers are demanding that they be paid the performance bonuses they were previously told they would receive. “It is now felt that the employer is trying to mitigate or reduce costs by taking that money,” said Ndawo. 

Johannesburg Water said it is “regrettable” that the strike action is taking place at a time when the city is experiencing a significant water supply crisis. 

Democratic Alliance (DA) Shadow MMC of Environment and Infrastructure Tyrell Meyers said that the impact of the go-slow is “huge”.

“This will affect the supply of water, attending to burst pipes across the city as well as sewage. We have also heard reports that water tankers have not been delivered,” he said. 

“This comes at a time when Midrand, Melville and surrounds, Bezuidenhout Valley and surrounds, South Hills and surrounds are really struggling after almost two weeks with no water,” he said.

Joburg heading for a manmade drought

The announcement of the go-slow comes only a day after Rand Water announced that the water system is under extreme pressure at the moment due to overconsumption in Johannesburg and Tshwane. 

“This above normal consumption has exceeded allocated volumes and continues to place significant strain on the overall water supply network,” Rand Water said in a statement. 

It added that the current demand is forcing the system to operate under pressure, stretching infrastructure capacity to accommodate the usage levels.

“Rand Water will be reducing water supply to these areas to restore water supply in affected areas and to stabilise the entire bulk water supply system.”

This has led to water outages and low water pressure across Johannesburg and Tshwane. 

This comes as residents of Johannesburg have suffered multiple recent water outages. In Melville, residents told GroundUp they are moving into the third week of having dry taps. 

Residents of Sandton, Midrand, Alexandra and Diepsloot were recently left without water for over a week due to power outages and emergency repairs. 

This was after repair work at the Palmiet Pump Station coincided with a power failure at the Zuikerbosch Pump Station. 

According to Water Forum, 20 notable disruptions have been reported in Johannesburg alone in the last two weeks. 

The DA has called on the executive to urgently intervene as Johannesburg heads into a “manmade drought.”

Johannesburg Water says that it is engaging the matter through “established and appropriate labour relations channels” to address the issues raised in a “structured, lawful and responsible manner.”