Innovative Staffing Solutions (ISS) has raised questions over the accounting and administration of billions of rand held by the National Bargaining Council for the Road Freight and Logistics Industry (NBCRFLI), but the Council has strongly rejected the allegations and says there is no financial impropriety.
The dispute follows an analysis by ISS of the NBCRFLI’s published audited financial statements covering the 2018 to 2025 financial years.
At the centre of the dispute is approximately R2.59 billion in investments which ISS says relates to workers’ benefit funds.
ISS argues that the financial statements make it difficult to distinguish assets belonging to the Sick Pay, Holiday Pay, Leave Pay and Wellness funds from the Council’s own assets.
The NBCRFLI disputes that interpretation.
The Council says the R2.59 billion represents money collected from industry employees to administer Sick Pay, Holiday Pay and Leave Pay benefits and says the funds belong to workers.
The NBCRFLI also says the funds are ring-fenced and administered for industry employees.
The Council’s own website confirms that its Funds Administration department processes annual leave, sick leave and Holiday Pay Bonus benefits.
Dispute over separate financial statements
ISS argues that separate financial statements or audits should have been prepared for the individual benefit funds.
NBCRFLI rejects this, saying it is required to prepare one set of annual financial statements covering the Council and its benefit funds.
The Council says its external auditors audit the benefit funds and the Main Council before issuing an audit opinion.
There is also a specific provision dealing with the Wellness Fund. A 2026 Government Gazette containing amendments to the NBCRFLI’s Main Collective Agreement states that the appointed auditor must audit the Wellness Fund’s books, records and financial statements as part of the Main Council’s consolidated financial statements, with no separate audit opinion issued for the Wellness Fund.
The Labour Relations Act requires bargaining councils to prepare annual financial statements and arrange for an annual audit of their books and financial statements.
Did the benefit funds run short?
One of the sharpest disagreements concerns the financial position of the Sick Pay, Holiday Pay and Leave Pay funds.
ISS’s analysis claimed the three funds had a combined shortfall of:
- R35.8 million in 2021
- R23.1 million in 2022
- R31.2 million in 2023
The NBCRFLI says this is incorrect.
According to the Council, the funds’ assets exceeded the industry trust and unclaimed benefit liability by R118.9 million in 2023 and R4.57 million in 2022, while the figures for 2021 were equal.
The difference appears to centre on how the figures in the financial statements have been interpreted, making the underlying accounting entries important to understanding the dispute.
Wellness Fund becomes another point of contention
ISS also questioned the treatment of the Wellness Fund in the 2025 financial statements.
Its analysis highlighted approximately R78.5 million in Wellness Fund investments, R364.5 million in contributions and R309.7 million in medical expenses.
NBCRFLI says the Wellness Fund maintains its own general ledger and separate accounting records, with income, expenses, assets and liabilities separately recorded.
The Council also disputes ISS’s characterisation of the contributions as Council revenue and medical expenses as Council expenses.
NBCRFLI says the Wellness Fund recorded income of R371.35 million and expenses of R348.95 million for the 2024/25 financial year, resulting in a surplus of about R22.39 million.
The Council’s 2024/25 audited financial statements independently show Wellness Fund contributions of approximately R364.55 million and levy income of R148.07 million, while interest received was approximately R325.04 million.
Why investment income matters
Another issue raised by ISS is the Council’s reliance on investment income.
The 2024/25 audited financial statements show approximately R325 million in interest received, compared with R148.1 million in levies.
ISS argues that this level of reliance on investment returns raises questions about the Council’s financial model, particularly if interest rates or investment returns decline.
NBCRFLI says the use of investment income is permitted under its Constitution and is part of the reason it has been able to keep levies unchanged for more than a decade.
The Council says investment income is used to fund operational expenditure and that its investment and financial management are subject to oversight by its Audit and Risk Committee and Investment Committee.
NBCRFLI points to audit history
The Council strongly rejects the suggestion that its financial management is improper.
It says it has received an unqualified audit opinion for the past ten years, including the financial year ended February 2026.
NBCRFLI also says similar allegations were previously reported to the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA), which it says found no wrongdoing relating to the Council’s financial statements.
SA Trucker has not independently verified the details or outcome of the IRBA matter and has asked that the relevant documentation be made available.
A wider legal dispute
The financial disagreement comes against the backdrop of a much longer legal battle between ISS and NBCRFLI over the Council’s Main Collective Agreement and ISS’s status within the road freight and logistics industry.
NBCRFLI says the financial allegations are a retaliatory response to its enforcement action against ISS director Arnoux Maré.
ISS has separately challenged the Council’s jurisdiction and the application of its collective agreement to the company.
The two sides therefore remain sharply divided, not only over ISS’s obligations to the Council, but now also over how billions of rand in worker-related funds are reflected and administered.
For workers in the road freight and logistics industry, the important question is ultimately whether the benefit funds are adequately accounted for, protected and available to meet legitimate claims.
For now, ISS and NBCRFLI provide very different interpretations of what the published financial statements show.
SA Trucker will continue to follow the financial and legal dispute as the parties provide further documentation and responses.
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