By Rorisang Modiba
- Eskom’s total remuneration bill rose 37% in two years. Over the same period, Nersa approved cumulative electricity tariff increases of about 23%.
- A new law that came into effect on 22 May 2026 will require Eskom to publish pay gaps between its top and bottom earners for the first time.
Eskom’s employees received 37% more in remuneration between 2024 and 2026. Over the same two years, electricity tariffs went up by about 23%.
A new law means the full picture of who earned what will soon have to be made public.
The remuneration disclosure provisions of the Companies Amendment Act came into effect on 22 May 2026. Under the new rules, Eskom and other state-owned companies must publish remuneration reports showing the total pay of their highest- and lowest-paid employees, average and median salaries across the workforce, and the pay gap between the top 5% of earners and the bottom 5%.
Currently, Eskom reports only its total wage bill and employee numbers. Based on those figures, the average annual employee cost in the 2025 financial year was R1.26 million per person.
Eskom says that figure does not reflect what most workers actually take home. It includes executives, senior managers, engineers, pension contributions, medical aid, overtime, bonuses and other employment costs across all staff.
According to Solidarity, workers in Eskom’s bargaining unit, which covers more than two-thirds of staff, earned an average of R457,800 a year. That figure covers only employees represented in wage negotiations and excludes management and executives.
The average bonus paid per Eskom employee was R128,000. Energy analyst Chris Yelland has frequently criticised Eskom’s remuneration and pricing decisions. Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has previously described some of Eskom’s tariff requests as “unaffordable and untenable.”
Eskom says its remuneration strategy is aimed at attracting and keeping critical skills to support its turnaround plans.
Pictured above: [no image supplied]
Image source: [no image supplied]
