Despite the money reportedly being taken from crucial water and roads projects, the mayor's spokesperson says it is good for residents.
UPDATE: This story has been updated with response from the Executive Mayor’s office dismissing claims of funds being diverted.
Three weeks after The Citizen revealed that R10 billion was being diverted to keep the South African Municipal Worker’s Union (Samwu) from disrupting the G20 Leaders’ Summit, a deal between the City of Joburg and the union has reportedly been reached.
The union has been pushing for salary parity with workers in other municipalities.
The city and union have been negotiating the multi-year deal for several weeks, amid threats from the union to shut down highways and the summit itself. “Nothing will move in Gauteng,” Samwu Johannesburg regional chair Ester Mtatyana is said to have told workers about the dispute.
According to the Sunday Times, an agreement was finalised on Friday, just days before the global meeting.
The deal, as reported by The Citizen back in October, includes increases of between R1.2 billion and R2 billion by March 2026, between R5 billion and R6 billion by July 2026, and a further R4.1 billion for workers by July 2027.
Water services and roads could be affected
The money was reportedly taken from those earmarked for crucial water and roads projects, but the City has labelled this claim as “entirely false.”
“No such diversion has taken place. The City has not yet budgeted for the agreement reached in principle with SAMWU on Friday, 14 November 2025, and no amount has been drawn from any capital budget for this purpose,” the city’s Director of Mayoral Communications Khathu Mulaudzi said.
“The agreement reached in principle on 14 November 2025 introduces a fair and equitable remuneration
framework, focusing on standard job grading, industry benchmarking, salary parity, performance-based
progression, and financial sustainability.
“Salary adjustments will be phased in over three years and financed through internal savings, improved revenue management, structural efficiencies and strict expenditure controls — not through any diversion of capital funds.”
Mulaudzi told the Sunday Times that the deal with Samwu would benefit residents.
Mulaudzi argued that the agreement would now “bring [about] labour stability [and] employee wellness, and optimise employee performance in favour of the residents of the City of Joburg”.
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Money for unions but not to fix service delivery issues
DA Johannesburg caucus leader Belinda Kayser-Echeozonjoku earlier questioned why Morero was unable to find funds for water infrastructure but was happy to appease the unions.
“This crisis is a direct result of poor prioritisation and financial mismanagement, instead of allocating sufficient funds and ringfencing those funds to Joburg Water to address the decaying infrastructure and failing reservoirs.
“This is not leadership, it is an absolute disgrace that while residents are waiting for water, the mayor is trying to save his political career,” Kayser-Echeozonjoku told The Citizen.
Additional reporting by Jarryd Westerdale
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