Share

Amcu looking for 'living wage' from mine bosses

Johannesburg - Members of South Africa's Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) will on Thursday begin meetings to decide on pay demands for platinum companies as wage talks loom, a spokesperson said on Monday.

Manzini Zungu said the union's branches would put forward their wage demands which would be consolidated at national level ahead of talks with Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), Impala Platinum and Lonmin.

The existing two-year wage deal between the companies and unions expires at the end of next month.

Platinum companies are still reeling from the effects of a record five-month strike in 2014 led by Amcu - the biggest union in the sector - when it sought a more than doubling in wages to R12 500. In the end, the workers settled for raises of around 20% annually.

The lengthy strike, pay increases and low commodity prices forced firms to cut thousands of jobs, sell mines and delay projects. Amplats sold off its Rustenberg mines to Sibanye Gold to focus more on its mechanised mines.

The mining firms have said that unaffordable increases could trigger job losses which are a thorny issue in South Africa, which holds local polls in August and where unemployment reached its highest level on record in the first quarter.

Lonmin's CEO Ben Magara said he did not anticipate further job cuts for now, but added conditions may change.

Zungu however said companies could not use the threat of job cuts to intimidate workers from asking for salary increases.

"In wage talks, we are going to negotiate for our members fully aware of the situation and knowing that the threat of job cuts is a lifetime threat that doesn't go away," Zungu said.

"Our members are just looking for a living wage so that they can own houses and take kids to university."

The National Union of Mineworkers, the second biggest union in the sector, said it had not yet started on the process to set wage demands for its members.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
19.02
-0.4%
Rand - Pound
24.16
-0.2%
Rand - Euro
20.67
-0.4%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.40
+0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.13
+0.4%
Platinum
906.17
-1.9%
Palladium
1,006.16
-5.6%
Gold
2,155.87
-0.2%
Silver
24.92
-0.5%
Brent Crude
86.89
+1.8%
Top 40
66,252
0.0%
All Share
72,431
0.0%
Resource 10
53,317
0.0%
Industrial 25
100,473
0.0%
Financial 15
16,622
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders