By EPN Reporter
MBABANE– A total of 112 companies were able to implement Cost of Living Adjustment (CoLA) to their workers in 2022.
This is contained in the 2023 Company Survey Report, which was issued by the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development. This report is prepared by the economic planning ministry, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE).
In this report, 64 companies are said to have awarded CoLA that was above the inflation rate, while 48 companies awarded CoLA that was below the inflation rate. The report states that in 2022, there was a problem for the entire nation, as there was a notable increase of food prices and other commodities. “In 2022, there was a notable acceleration in prices from an average of 3.7 percent in 2021 to 4.8 percent in 2022, with food and fuel prices recording double-digit growth,” states part of the report.
According to the report, of the total surveyed companies, 64 companies (52.9 percent) awarded CoLA that is above inflation, while 48 companies (30.8 percent) awarded below inflation. The report further stated that 20 companies (6.5 percent) did not award CoLA in the review period.
The awarding of cost of living, according to the report, was positively correlated with performance of companies. Companies that reported poor performance in the review period were unable to award COLA.
In terms of industrial action, 11 companies (9 percent of total entities surveyed) reported to have had an industrial action in the review period. These were mainly in manufacturing sector (mainly food and textile manufacturing), education sector, mining and transport sectors.
