This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.
Business Report writes that the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has rejected Village Main Reef’s (VMR) restructuring plan in which 6,309 mineworkers could likely be retrenched.
On Thursday, the union called on Mineral and Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe to intervene, saying that the company had unilaterally issued letters to workers instructing them not to report to work after the national coronavirus lockdown period. Masibulele Naki, NUM’s Matlosana regional secretary, said: “VMR is pleading poverty, but it has been harbouring some thieves within its management structures. Recently, the company dismissed some of its senior managers for stealing gold and other fraud and corruption-related matters. Now the mineworkers must pay for that by facing no work no pay during the lockdown and being retrenched.” VMR recently issued a Section 189 (i.e. retrenchment) notice notifying organised labour of its plan to permanently close the Tau Lekoa Mine and restart the Kopanang and West Gold Plant with reduced employees when the national coronavirus lockdown ends. The government has given mining houses the green light to operate at 50% capacity, but VMR said to keep operating the Tau Lekoa and Kopanang loss-making underground operations with the current workforce while only operating at 50% production levels was not possible and would widen losses.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Dineo Faku at Business Report
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