The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) is outraged by the revelation that municipalities owe approximately R1.7 billion in unpaid pension fund contributions deducted from workers’ salaries.
This is not an accounting error. It is not a cash-flow problem. It is theft.
These are monies that municipalities deducted from workers’ salaries on the understanding that they would be paid over to their pension funds. Instead, many municipalities have unlawfully withheld these contributions, placing the retirement security of thousands of workers and their families at risk.
SAFTU has repeatedly condemned the same criminal practice in the private security industry, where numerous employers deduct pension and provident fund contributions, UIF and medical aid contributions but fail to pay them over. We have consistently demanded criminal prosecution of those responsible.
The same principle must apply here.
There cannot be one law for private employers and another for municipalities. Public institutions cannot be allowed to commit the very crimes they are expected to prevent.
We therefore demand:
- The immediate payment of every cent owed to workers’ pension funds.
- Criminal investigations into every municipality and every accounting officer responsible for deducting pension contributions without paying them over.
- Personal accountability for municipal managers, chief financial officers and any other officials who authorised or concealed these unlawful practices.
- That National Treasury, COGTA, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority and the Hawks jointly investigate whether these deductions constitute fraud, theft and breaches of the Municipal Finance Management Act.
- That organised labour be given a full list of all municipalities in arrears, the amounts owed, the duration of the arrears and the recovery plans.
Workers are already bearing the burden of wage freezes, austerity, collapsing municipal services and deteriorating working conditions. They cannot now be expected to discover, at retirement, that the pension contributions deducted from their salaries have simply disappeared.
The constitutional obligation of the state is to protect workers—not to rob them.
If municipalities can unlawfully withhold workers’ retirement savings without consequence, government loses all moral authority to prosecute private employers who engage in the same conduct.
SAFTU demands equal justice. Pension theft is pension theft, whether committed by a private company or by a municipality. Those responsible must be held personally and criminally accountable.
A statement was issued on behalf of SAFTU by the General Secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi.
For media inquiries, contact the National Spokesperson at:
Newton Masuku newtonm@saftu.org.za
0661682157
Media Officer: Asive Dyani 0719019564
