In our roundup of weekend news, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related stories that appeared since
Friday, 22 February 2019.
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With curse of South Deep still haunting Gold Fields, benefits of massive job cuts remain elusive Financial Mail reports that in the year ended December 2018, production across Gold Fields globally slipped 3%, revenues were 7% lower and losses for the year slid to $348.2m, compared to $19m the year before. Much of this had to do with South Deep. Though it has one of the world’s largest gold deposits, the mine hasn’t reached production targets for a long time and has proved to be a black hole for Gold Fields cash, guzzling about R100m a month. The mine was massively restructured in 2018, involving the retrenchment of 1,100 employees and as many as 500 contractors. Martin Preece, Gold Fields executive vice-president for SA, pointed out that the layoffs formed part of a selection process to leave the operation with "fewer, better people". Gold Fields expects to see the benefits of the painful and costly restructuring process, soon. But investors remain sceptical. All the producer wants from South Deep in 2019 is that it breaks even, but that’s far from certain. At the presentation of the annual results, Gold Fields CEO Nick Holland said: “There has to be a step change, and soon." He observed that the company always knew what it had to do, but was now focused on tightening up the execution of this. So, Gold Fields will implement a number of initiatives at South Deep including improved drilling and blasting, rigorous performance management, improved fleet utilisation and better stakeholder management. Read more of this report by Lisa Steyn at SA Labour News
Amcu sympathy strike to spread to at least 15 producers, warns Minerals Council Reuters reports that the Minerals Council SA (MCSA - previously known as the Chamber of Mines) said on Friday that at least 15 mining firms had received notices of strikes to be held this week in support of industrial action at Sibanye-Stillwater, where workers are on strike over wages and job cuts. The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) has been on strike at Sibanye’s gold operations since mid-November and plans to extend the strike to platinum mines as well as all other mines where the union has members. Producers to be affected include AngloGold Ashanti, Harmony Gold, Anglo American Platinum and Lonmin. The MCSA, which represents the mining firms, said it was “deeply concerned” about the potential consequences of the strike particularly in the gold and platinum sectors. “It is unfathomable that Amcu would willingly call for secondary strikes in an industry that is already in jeopardy. Employees and their families, and indeed the country as a whole, stand to lose so much should the secondary strikes occur,” MCSA chief executive Roger Baxter said. The mining firms were considering the notices and vowed to “everything in their power” to prevent a strike, including legal action, the MCSA indicated. Read the original of Tanisha Heiberg’s report on this story in full at Moneyweb. Read too, Amcu strike action further undermines struggling gold, platinum sectors, warns Minerals Council, at Mining Weekly Amcu’s sympathy strike campaign suffers blow as it retracts notices at some mines Miningmx reports that efforts by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) to increase pressure on Sibanye-Stillwater through a seven-day campaign of secondary strikes suffered a setback over the weekend after it was advised by its lawyers to retract strike notices at a number of companies. The companies included DRDGold and African Rainbow Minerals (ARM). On 21 February, Amcu called sympathy strikes at about 15 companies where it is recognised, including AngloGold Ashanti, Harmony Gold, and Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), in order to press home demands for an improved gold wage deal from Sibanye-Stillwater. Three other unions agreed to the last year. The strike at Sibanye Driefontein and Beatrix gold mines commenced on 22 November. In terms of the Labour Relations Act, unions are entitled to call secondary strikes where it assists them in a primary wage dispute provided there is a financial link between the company targeted in the secondary strike with the company involved in the primary dispute. According to a letter issued by Amcu to DRDGold, the union stated: “Please note that the Association of Mineworkers & Construction Union has taken legal counsel and decided to hereby withdraw our notice of secondary strike action at your operations”. It is said to be curious that Amcu decided to withdraw its action against DRDGold since Sibanye-Stillwater has a 38% stake in DRDGold following a share for assets swap last year. Read the original of David McKay’s report in the above regard in full at Miningmx Companies scramble for interdicts to block Amcu’s secondary mine strikes BusinessLive reports that urgent applications lodged in court by 15 mining companies to prevent Thursday’s seven-day secondary mining strikes called by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) might stop the action before it starts. The secondary strikes are an attempt by Amcu to force an end to the protracted strike at Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold mines and is seen by industry players as a high-stake effort by the union’s president Joseph Mathunjwa to show his power. Amcu has issued notices to 15 gold and platinum mines, including AngloGold Ashanti, Harmony Gold, Impala Platinum, Northam and Glencore, warning of a secondary strike from 28 February to 7 March. Mining companies will argue in the labour court that a secondary strike can only be called if there is a direct link between the primary employer or company and those at which the secondary strike has been called, which in these cases they claim does not exist. Applications for an urgent decision were lodged on Friday with more expected on Monday and Tuesday. Amcu has entered the fourth month of a wage strike at Sibanye’s three large gold mines, with 14,000 workers unpaid in a protected strike started by the union on 21 November to demand annual R1,000/month salary increases. Read the original of Allan Seccombe’s report on the above in full at BusinessLive Gloria coal mine death toll rises to 18 with the recovery of 13 more bodies ANA reports that rescue and body retrieval workers on Friday afternoon brought to the surface 13 more bodies of suspected copper cable thieves from the underground area at Gloria coal mine in Mpumalanga. Police spokesman Brigadier Leonard Hlathi indicated: “The workers could not continue with the operations due to the severe smoke which prohibited them, and they will apparently go down again on Monday. The total number of retrieved bodies is now 18. An inquest docket has been opened for investigation. We are also investigating a case of trespassing in relation to this incident.” The 13 retrieved bodies are among those of some of about 20 people who were trapped at the Gloria mine’s underground area about three weeks ago, when an explosion occurred while they were allegedly stealing cables. The rescue and retrieval operations were subsequently marred by, among other things, the rising level of methane gas which made the conditions underground unsafe. Gloria mine, which is owned by the Gupta family, was placed under business rescue a year ago and its workers were put on special leave in December last year. Read the original of the report on this story in full at Mining Weekly Other labour / community posting(s) relating to mining
Union survey indicates that at least 70 schools in SA are ‘death traps, on verge of collapse’ The Citizen reports that according to a report on a survey conducted by the Suid-Afrikaanse Onderwysersunie (SAOU), thousands of pupils throughout the country were facing the danger of school buildings collapsing on them. The report found that more than 70 schools countrywide had infrastructure problems that required urgent attention. According to the union, the recent tragedy at Hoërskool Driehoek, in which four pupils were killed after a walkway collapsed, prompted the investigation. Johan Kruger, director of operations at SAOU, said: “The SAOU launched a national survey to obtain an informed picture of the degree of compliance with the regulations and standards of public school infrastructure. The survey to date has identified more than 70 schools with infrastructure problems that can be categorised as requiring urgent attention to parts of the buildings. The average age of the schools is 68 years. School maintenance is woefully inadequate.” A school, for example, that faces danger is Ennerdale Secondary School, where learning has been disrupted in the past two weeks because of fears that the school’s walkway, which connects two buildings, may collapse. A spokesperson for the department of basic education on Thursday referred enquiries regarding the condition of the schools to the individual provinces. Read the original of Gcina Ntsaluba’s report on this story in full at Bloemfontein Courant Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Nehawu’s battle at TVET and CET colleges over wages and employment conditions rages on The Sunday Independent reports that the impasse between the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) at colleges continues, with the strike over salaries and working conditions having entered its second week. On Friday, some technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges and community education and training (CET) colleges in Soweto were empty, with only a skeleton staff and a few students on the premises. Meantime, the department said it remained committed to finding a solution to issues raised by the union. Yet, talks between Higher Education Minister Naledi Pandor and union leaders broke down earlier in the week when Nehawu demanded that the director-general, Gwebinkundla Qonde, not be part of the meeting. Among the union’s demands is the removal of Qonde, the transfer of all college-paid lecturers into the government pay system, employment of lecturers on a permanent basis and better working conditions. Lecturers initially fell under the Department of Basic Education, but were later migrated to DHET. The union has long fought for the migration to be completed, the payment of benefits such as pension and medical aid contributions, and the normalisation of working hours. Some lecturers apparently earn below the minimum wage and have been on contract for years. Read more of this The Sunday Independent report by Lerato Diale at SA Labour News Public service unions threaten ‘rolling mass action’ against austerity budget BusinessLive writes that trade unions are seething with anger following Wednesday’s national budget speech, with a number of them threatening to go on strike in response to the government’s austerity plans. In an effort to curb spending on the state wage bill, finance minister Tito Mboweni said national and provincial compensation budgets would be reduced by R27bn over the next three years, while older public servants would be “allowed” to take early retirement. But, decrying high vacancy rates, public sector unions claimed that the government’s plans to offer voluntary severance packages to thousands of workers flew in the face of existing collective bargaining agreements. Nehawu, SA’s biggest public sector union, said it would oppose any “undemocratic, authoritarian practices” seeking to undermine and unilaterally alter conditions of employment for its members. Meanwhile, metalworkers’ union Numsa said it would embark on a mass mobilisation campaign and called on labour federations Cosatu and Saftu to stage a “total shutdown” over the decision to unbundle Eskom. Cosatu affiliates will meet next week to discuss the federation’s response to the government plans, with some of its members pushing for a review of its 2018 decision to support the ANC during the elections. The Public Servants Association (PSA) described the interventions in respect of the public sector as “controversial”. Read the original of Theto Mahlakoana’s report on the above in full at BusinessLive
Sanco fights for overworked Baragwanath employees Sowetan reports that a civic organisation has called on the Gauteng government to hire more staff members at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (Bara) or face the wrath of the masses. On Thursday, members of the SA National Civic Organisation (Sanco) held a peaceful protest outside the hospital in Diepkloof, Soweto, in support of the plight of hospital staff. Provincial Sanco chairperson Chris Malatjane said they were there because the department continued to ignore requests to resolve problems at the hospital. “We want to see doctors and nurses hired in numbers. We want to see more security,” Malatjane stated. He said Bara needed a bigger budget as it also provided academic training and healthcare for people from the SADC region. He added that it was disturbing that people were dying at the facility because doctors were overworked. The health department was given 14 days to respond. Sanco deputy chairperson in the Johannesburg region, Phashe Magagane, said they would mobilise all their branches to engage in a massive protest action should the department fail to resolve the issues. “There should be an increase in the number of doctors, nurses, cleaners and porters in this hospital,” Magagane indicated. The same issues were raised during previous protests organised by labour unions, which called on government to save the facility from falling apart. Read more of this Sowetan report by Zoë Mahopo at SA Labour News
Eskom will indeed shed managerial jobs, Pravin Gordhan confirms BusinessLive reports that public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan said on Thursday that cost-cutting measures, including reducing the number of managers, remained part of Eskom’s turnaround plan. The previous week, President Cyril Ramaphosa, under pressure from unions, told parliament that references to cost-cutting “should be understood not to mean retrenchments. The preferred strategy in reducing human resources costs will be to offer voluntary packages to staff.” Ramaphosa also announced that the utility will be split into three units, namely generation, transmission and distribution. During a parliamentary debate on the crisis-ridden Eskom, Gordhan said the power utility’s salary bill continued to increase and the bloated management layers were of concern. He went on to state: “We have started engagements both as a political organisation [ANC] but more importantly as government to say how best do we manage this. How best do we prepare workers at Eskom not only for the kind of future they have within coal mines and coal-fired power stations, but what is their future as far as renewables are concerned? What are the new jobs that they can be trained for, and what are the new technologies that are developing within the energy industry, and how can they be best prepared for that future as well?” Read the original of Bekezela Phakathi’s report on this story in full at BusinessLive. Read too, Fire Gordhan right now for Eskom cost overruns, says Numsa, at The Citizen Numsa calls for 'rolling mass action' to stop Eskom unbundling Fin24 reports that the leadership of the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) has called for "rolling mass action" to stop the unbundling of Eskom, claiming the state was trying to privatise the power utility by stealth and that its members faced "massive" jobs losses. Numsa is one of three recognised unions at Eskom, together with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and Solidarity. On Thursday, Numsa spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said the union would be calling on workers at other trade unions and trade union federations to join the mass action. This announcement came after President Cyril Ramaphosa indicated in his State of the Nation address that Eskom would be split into three divisions, which would however still fall under an Eskom parent company. "Numsa has consistently warned workers and the working class of South Africa in general that the ANC has chosen the Western capitalist path of development, which is both dangerous and disastrous for our country," said Hlubi-Majola. She added that the effects of the unbundling would be "far more detrimental than what is anticipated". Read the original of this report in full at Fin24. Read too, Numsa to start mass strike against IPPs, Eskom unbundling, at The Citizen Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Jobs-for-sale scandal rocks SABC radio station Thobela FM SowetanLive reports that SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) radio station Thobela FM in Limpopo has been rocked by allegations of a jobs-for-sale scandal. A voice recording, believed to be of feature producer and presenter Tlou Moabelo, in which she alleges that she was asked to pay executive producer Sello Mochichila R20,000 after her contract was not renewed, has surfaced. In the recording, which had gone viral on social media, Moabelo can be heard in what seems like a telephonic conversation with Conty Lebepe, an ardent listener of the radio station. "My contract was terminated before it lapsed while my colleagues renewed theirs, because I didn't pay,” Moabelo states. She claims in the recording that her executive producer Sello Mochichila told her to get a R20,000 loan on his behalf and wanted a deposit for a car for his wife. She continued: "In January last year, I then received a text message from Mochichila saying he's trying to renew my contract but human resources people are being difficult." Moabelo was not prepared to comment when asked about the voice recording. Read the original of Peter Ramothwala’s report on this story in full at SowetanLive
Unions slam SAA’s proposed plan to restructure into three business units The Sunday Independent writes that SA Airways (SAA) and organised labour are not on the same plane when it comes to SAA’s proposed turnaround strategy. The state-owned enterprise (SOE) recently announced that it would restructure itself into domestic, regional and international business units, but trade unions responded that they were not aware of the proposal. According to SAA spokesperson Tlali Tlali, the CEO, Vuyani Jarana, has had bilateral meetings with labour unions, including the SA Transport and Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu), “and the operating model has been shared extensively.” The SOE is struggling to stay afloat with a debt of R12.7billion, which the government has guaranteed. But, Satawu spokesperson Zanele Sabela said the union was not aware of the SAA plan and likened Jarana’s announcement on the matter to the unfolding situation at power utility Eskom. “Unbundling is a precursor to privatisation and synonymous with job losses. We view this latest plan by SAA as a move towards privatisation. We are all too aware of the jobs bloodbath that resulted from the privatisation of Telkom and we cannot afford to see the same happen to SAA,” Sabela said. Cosatu spokesperson Sizwe Pamla said the model was inappropriate, while Saftu spokesperson Patrick Craven said the model could lead to job losses. Read the original of Manyane Manyane’s report on the SAA restructuring in full at Independent News
ANC’s Zizi Kodwa accused of rape City Press reports that a woman has accused head of the ANC’s presidency office and the party’s acting spokesperson, Zizi Kodwa, of drugging and raping her at a hotel room in Sandton in April last year. The details are contained in an undated letter sent to the ANC and Kodwa. Apparently the author of the letter has not reported the matter to the police, but intended to lay charges on Sunday. ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte on Saturday said that a complaint had been sent to ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule’s office regarding “a high-ranking ANC member”. In a statement on Sunday, Kodwa said the allegations were “replete with false accusations” and he described them as a “feeble yet dangerous attempt at political blackmail and manipulation”. He added that he would not “succumb to extortion and blackmail” and would not be silenced through “dirty tricks”. Apparently another woman, a friend of the accuser, was also drugged and raped, but has maintained her silence. A source familiar with the details said a senior ANC official tried to facilitate the payment of psychiatric and medical bills for the affected women, but he changed his mind when one of the women demanded R200,000 for her silence. In the letter to the ANC, the alleged victim from Seshego in Limpopo described the events that unfolded on 14 April (more details in report). Read the original of the City Press report by Abram Mashego and Ngwako Modjadji in full at City Press. Read too, 'It's a dirty tricks campaign', says Zizi Kodwa as he denies 'grotesque' rape accusation, at News24
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