Transnet pensioners march
Transnet pensioners up in arms; demand a better dispensation.
Some 150 Transnet pensioners from all over the country gathered at the Art museum in Pretoria yesterday for a protest march to the Union Building to deliver a petition to the president.
The pensioners are bent on recovering assets they felt they were entitled to, saying their Transnet pensions funds have failed them.
Currently there are some 62 000 Transnet pensioners. Wynandia Coetzee of Geyser and Coetzee attorneys have applied for a court date on behalf of the impoverished pensioners with the aim to recover R79 billion in assets and interest.
None of the pensioners taking part in the march was younger than 70 years. One of them, Ronnie Evans (91), collapsed in the scorching heat while waiting for an official of the presidency to receive the memorandum.
Some pensioners were pushed in wheelchairs, but with the meagre average pension of only R1 700 it was for all a matter of life and death to appeal to government to urgently step in as mediator to force Transnet to give them a decent market-related pension.
The pensioners, comprising people from all race groups, have historically been receiving an annual pension increase of only 2% per annum, while the living costs have escalated beyond the official inflation figures.
While the pensioners receives ad hoc bonuses from the funds now and then, they are ex gratia in nature and too little to make a difference. As things now stand, most pensioners receive R2 000 or less a month. Many receive only R1 after medical aid contributions have been deducted.
The pensioners, after having appointed the legal team, contended there had been irregularities with regard to the management of the two funds by the Transnet appointed board of trustees in each fund and by Transnet as employer itself.
Accordingly, a class-action court application and claim against Transnet and the state is now pending that, if successful, can cost Transnet more than R79 billion. This will be the highest amount ever awarded by a court in South Africa. Such a judgement will effectively halt Transnet capital expansion plans and will also have a huge effect on the national budget. Transnet already lost cases of appeal in the action.
Lawyer Anton Alberts of the Freedom Front Plus, who initiated the process for a better disposition for the pensioners, said the pensioners realised the costs to Transnet and the State could be debilitating.
But he argued that the pensioners also deserved a humane old age, which they felt was stolen from them.
“The pensioners want better governance of the pension funds by the board of trustees and a democratic elected independent chairperson. They demand justice and the payment of the pensions as promised by Transnet,” he said.
At present, more than 80% of pensioners earn less than R4 000 a month and 62% earn less than R2 500. The shocking situation is that 45% of the pensioners earn less than the State’s ordinary old age pension. There is a large number of pensioners presently who earn R1 a month as they no longer receive benefits, such as free medical assistance.
Alberts said: “We believe Transnet is playing the waiting game. Waiting to see how long they can draw out the action in the hope that more and more the pensioners die. We do have a figure that some 300 Transnet pensioners die yearly. So it seems like Transnet is hoping that the problem solves itself.”
He said that based on the evidence, the pensioners had a strong case, which was underscored by the fact that Transnet’s two efforts to appeal were turned down.
He also called on pensioners of the various funds to support the current court application.
“Members can contact the attorneys who are acting on behalf of the applicants or could contact the Transnet Pension Action Group (TPAG) for more information. Members who support the action are requested to send an SMS to the number 45509 and provide the following information: Transnet (space) pension number (space) surname. Cost of an SMS amounts to R1.50.
Read: Bejaarde spoorweg-pensioenarisse wil betoog teen swak pensioene
Pensioenarisse se hofsaak gaan voort
Grootste klasaksie eis in SA geskiedenis begin eersdaags
R70-miljard Transnet hofsaak eersdaags in die hof
Transnetklasaksie begin uiteindelik vir 62 000 verarmde pesioenarisse
Transnet pensioenarisse wen nog ‘n rondte in die hof
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