The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes progress to ensure thousands of embattled and abused South African Post Office (SAPO) and Telkom employees are able to exercise their hard-won legal right to the relief provided to workers under the Two-Pot Pension Reforms.

From 1 September 2024, all pension and provident fund members, millions of workers, are legally entitled to enjoy the relief put in place by the Two-Pot Pension Reforms.  This includes immediate access to 10% up to R30 000 from existing savings, and once a tax year being able to tap into a third of future savings.

These progressive reforms driven by COSATU, providing financially struggling workers an alternative to resignation to seek relief from their savings, are binding upon all pension and provident funds without exception.  All funds are required to amend their rules and systems to enable workers access to their savings. 

Whilst COSATU was extremely dismayed that this had not happened on 1 September for SAPO and Telkom employees, we are pleased and heartened that once the Federation brought this to the attention of the Ministries for Communications and Digital Technologies and Finance, that they intervened swiftly to remove the administrative blockages. 

Both Ministries have now signed off on the Telkom and SAPO pension funds’ rules amendments.  The last remaining regulatory step to enable Telkom and SAPO employees to have access to their savings, is for the Ministry for Communications and Digital Technologies to publish and promulgate these amended rules in the Government Gazette.

COSATU will continue to work closely with both Ministries and Departments to ensure this final step is expedited and relief is brought to these workers who have been through some of the most difficult times in recent years.  We are confident this matter will soon be concluded.

Issued by COSATU

For further information please contact:

Matthew Parks(COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator)

Cell: 082 785 0687

Email: matthew@cosatu.org.za