BL Premium reports that the Minerals Council SA (MCSA) warned on Wednesday that SA’s debt-laden mines with high fixed costs stood to lose between 10,000 and 45,000 jobs in the national lockdown if they received no support.
In an economic assessment of the lockdown that started on 27 March to curb the spread of Covid-19, the MCSA warned as follows: “The industry’s high fixed-cost structure and high debt-leverage ratio, combined with the inability to produce sufficient volumes, will lead to the permanent closure of some operations and even companies, job losses and substantial negative impact on supplier and downstream industries, ultimately affecting the entire economy.” While some mining companies have successfully applied for permission to strictly limited mining at surface assets, and to operate furnaces and refineries, the bulk of SA’s mines are labour-intensive, underground operations and remain shut. For the original 21-day period, the council estimated 10,000 jobs out of the sector’s 450,000 jobs were at risk, while a longer lockdown “with lower production and no mechanisms in place to support the industry, could put 10% of the workforce, or 45,000 direct jobs, at risk”. The ongoing costs for mines, which incorporated paying wages during the lockdown as well as care and maintenance costs for suspended mines, have repercussions for companies, the council noted.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Allan Seccombe at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
- Read too, South Africa mining faces 45,000 job losses on extended lockdown, at Moneyweb
- And also, SA to allow mines to operate at 50% capacity during lockdown, at Moneyweb
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page