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Miningmx reports that according to trade union Solidarity, Sibanye-Stillwater was spending more time preparing for a strike at its gold operations than trying to reach a new wage settlement.
Earlier this month, the union joined with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) in declaring a dispute with Sibanye over what they claimed was a meagre three-year wage offer. “After four months of negotiations, Sibanye’s salary offer stands at 3.4% for miners, artisans and officials, and a R400 increase for the category 4 to 8 employees, with a meagre increase for years two and three,” Gideon du Plessis, Solidarity general-secretary, pointed out. He went on to state: “Sibanye, who pleads poverty at the negotiating table, will have to learn from Harmony [Gold] and VMR [Village Main Reef] how to follow a progressive approach to salary negotiations. Currently it is spending more time preparing for a possible strike than trying to reach a settlement.” Sibanye spokesman James Wellsted said earlier this month that the company wouldn’t “accede to threats” after the unions embarked on their joint dispute action. Saying the producer would not cross-subsidise with income earned from mining platinum group metals, Wellsted stated: “If we were to accept the union demands as well as the increase in the wage tariff from Eskom of about 15%, the gold mines would be loss-making and that would result in job losses. If it goes to a strike, we have to do what’s right. We will take a strike.” The first conciliation session between unions and Sibanye will take place on 19 October under the auspices of the CCMA.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by David McKay at Miningmx
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