News24 reports that two mining unions have called calling for amendments to mining safety legislation after yet another death at Sibanye-Stillwater operations.
The miner confirmed that at its Driefontein Khomanani shaft a 35-year-old winch operator had entered a gully while busy cleaning during the night shift when he was fatally hit by a scraper. National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) spokesperson Livhuwani Mammburu reacted by saying: "The Mine Health and Safety Act (MHSA) must be amended so that mine bosses [can] also be held responsible. They must be prosecuted and sent to jail… It is a very worrying situation at Sibanye and it shows that the company does not care about the mineworkers and the health and safety precautions." The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) also called for urgent intervention, saying the current spate of deaths at Sibanye-Stillwater was a crime against humanity. Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa said mining minister Gwede Mantashe and President Cyril Ramaphosa must intervene, and specifically look at strengthening section 23 of the MHSA in terms of which workers could refuse to work in dangerous conditions.
- Read this report by Iavan Pijoos in full at News24
- Read too, Sibanye condemned for yet another death at its operations on Tuesday, at The Citizen
- And also, Patience runs out for Sibanye killer mines, at SowetanLive
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page