Johannesburg - Harmony Gold Mining Company [JSE:HAR] decided
to delay the post-festive season reopening of Kusasalethu mine near
Carletonville to review its financial and operational status after strikes,
according to a report on Friday.
The Star reported that about 200 men sat outside the main
entrance of the mine on Thursday, after not knowing that operations would be
closed until further notice.
Harmony spokesperson Marian van der Walt told the newspaper
that notices of the temporary closure were distributed through the media and
unions had been notified.
She added that workers were sent home on December 21 and
were told to remain there until notified otherwise. Employees were informed
that they would be paid their basic salaries while at home.
In December, more than 1 000 employees staged an underground
sit-in at the mine demanding that their fellow employees, who had been
suspended, be reinstated.
Workers’ committee member Lennox Tshisa told The Star that
workers had not been notified of the temporary closure, and many travelled from
Lesotho and Mozambique to report for work.
“It is clear that workers were not informed of this until
they arrived at the mine and realised they were homeless,” he said, according
to the report.
Van der Walt said Harmony would continue to pay the salaries
of more than 5 000 workers while operations at the Kusasalethu remained closed,
and it expected workers to return home.
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