Reuters reports that the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Tuesday said it was planning to strike at De Beers’ Venetia mine after wage talks broke down, potentially disrupting operations at the diamond giant’s new underground facility.

According to the union, its members were demanding a 9% wage hike, but Anglo American unit De Beers was offering a 6% increase. “The NUM can confirm that the four-month wage negotiations with the world’s leading diamond company De Beers have collapsed and a dispute has been declared at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA),” NUM indicated in a statement. NUM did not say when it intended to begin the strike, but said it was currently working on picketing rules with the CCMA, while mobilising its “more than 1,500 members, preparing them for a protected indefinite strike.” SA’s labour laws require workers to give a notice of 48 hour before embarking on a strike.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nelson Banya at Moneyweb

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