Business

The average Eskom employee earns R2,580 a day – with a R85 million payday for the bosses

Staff Writer

 ·31 Aug 2026

Eskom’s top executives received over R85 million in pay for 2026, with chief executive officer Dan Marokane scoring R12.2 million.

The numbers were revealed in the group’s annual results for the year ending 31 March 2026.

Marokane’s salary comprised a base salary of R9.54 million, up 6% from the R9 million base salary he received in 2025.

He also received a short-term incentive (STI) bonus of R2.5 million for the year. However, Eskom noted that a R3.7 million STI is awaiting shareholder approval.

Marokane’s approved total remuneration for the year, R12.2 million, was 4% higher than his total pay of R11.7 million in 2025.

Group Chief Financial Officer Calib Cassim earned a larger payout than Marokane, with a total package of R13.5 million for the year.

This included a sizeable R5.1 million ‘other’ payment, in addition to his R6.4 million base salary and R2 million STI bonus.

The other payment relates to long-service award, allowances, insurance cover and, where applicable, sign-on bonuses, Eskom said.

The total payout for other exco members came to R57 million for the year, including R15.6 million in bonuses. Including former execs, the total hits R59.4 million.

This is 17.6% higher than the R50.5 million paid to executives and former executives in 2025.

Regarding its remuneration policies, Eskom said that managerial employees receive a guaranteed cost‑to‑company package that includes medical aid, pension, dread disease cover and group life benefits.

In October 2025, an average increase of 7% was implemented, comprising a guaranteed cost‑of‑living adjustment of 3% and a discretionary element to reward and retain top performers and to address income disparities.

The employee STI scheme was continued in FY2026.

Eskom said this scheme is designed to “drive operational excellence, retain critical skills and reinforce a high‑performance, ethical culture,” and is subject to strict qualification criteria.

Employees in Generation, NTCSA and Distribution are also eligible for monthly production bonuses, based on achieving operational performance targets to improve efficiency and operational productivity.

“Both schemes are self-funded and reward employees from financial and operational efficiencies,” Eskom said.

Non-executive directors earned R26.1 million for the year, up 16.5% from the R22.4 million the year before.

Eskom chairman, Mteto Nyati, was the top earner among non-executive directors with total pay of R2.81 million (2025: R2.72 million)

Eskom noted that non-executive directors receive compensation in the form of a fixed monthly retainer fee and capped per-meeting attendance fees.

Average pay at Eskom

According to Eskom’s data, the average employee at the group earns R941,933 a year, with the median salary sitting lower at R858,580.

This works out to the average worker at the group earning around R2,580 a day, or a median of R2.350.

CEO Dan Marokane is the group’s top earner in terms of guaranteed and variable income, while the lowest earner gets paid R62,892.

On a per-day basis, this is R32,985 versus R172 a day.

Looking at the top and bottom 5% of earners at the company, the top 5%—which would include managers and executives—have an average salary of around R2.2 million (R5,990 a day).

The bottom 5% of earners earn an average salary of R162,036 per year (R444 a day), resulting in a top-to-bottom-5% remuneration gap ratio of around 13.5.