The South African Post Office SAPO has entered into a R381 million agreement with the Unemployment Insurance Fund UIF aimed at preserving jobs and supporting the organisation's recovery plan.
The funding will be provided through the UIF's Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme TERS over a six-month period. The agreement is expected to help safeguard close to 6 000 jobs at the financially distressed entity.
Employment and Labour Minister Nomakhosazana Meth confirms the partnership on Monday, stating that the initiative forms part of efforts to stabilise SAPO.
TERS Coordinator at UIF, Rachel Taukobung, says the funds are strictly allocated for salary payments.
"This is only for salaries and we are saying that as we save the post office, their payroll funds - the R381 million that they would have ordinarily paid to the employees - will be used elsewhere in terms of their turnaround strategy that they have implemented," says Taukobung.