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ANA reports that two trade unions, the United Association of SA (Uasa) and Solidarity, each said on Friday that they have tabled their wage demands in the gold mining sector.
Uasa spokesman Andre Venter commented: “Due to the huge inequalities and historical discrepancies in the mining industry, it is Uasa’s contention that it will be a mistake to follow the traditional CPI-based (consumer price index) approach when formulating wage demands in 2015. Our members at entry level would like to see these inequalities addressed, hence they are resistant against the notion of percentage pay increases. The members insist to know exactly what the effect of an increase will be on their take-home pay and that the latter should be easily understood by anyone in their respective households.” Venter added that the union had been mandated to move away from the traditional “basket of items” approach. “As a consequence, we have structured our demands to gain the maximum increases in respect of basic take-home pay, plus incentives for members to pursue maximum productivity without compromising safety, thereby assuring a better quality of life for members after retirement.”
Solidarity has also tabled its demand of a 12% wage hike and for the retirement age to be reviewed. General secretary Gideon du Plessis said the union wanted the retirement age to move from 60 years to 63 years for underground workers and to 65 for surface workers. The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said it would table its demands at the end of the month. The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) was not available for comment. Gold wage negotiations are expected to commence at the end of next month or at the beginning of June
- Read this report by Molaole Montsho in full on page 20 of Business Report of 28 April 2015
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