Johannesburg - Trade unions organising at Anglo Platinum
[JSE:AMS] (Amplats) have not received striking workers' grievances, the union
said on Tuesday.
"Unions have not received grievances from workers. They
refuse to use us," said Uasa operations manager Israel Sakala.
He said workers had instead elected a committee to represent
them.
"We (unions) have an agreement with management. That
agreement needs all signatories to be reviewed. Uasa called on workers to
return to work and allow bargaining agents to table their grievances," he
said.
He said the number of workers reporting for work was
declining every day.
"Some workers are staying away because of
intimidation," he said.
The National Union of Mineworkers (Num) said it was meeting
with workers on Tuesday to hear their grievances.
"We do not have anything from them. We are meeting with
them today (Tuesday)," said spokesperson Lesiba Seshoka.
Amplats workers went on a wildcat strike two weeks ago,
demanding a salary increase of R17 000.
The workers' representatives and mine management were
meeting with the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA)
in Rustenburg on Tuesday, in an attempt to find common ground.
One of the workers' leaders Tebogo Lebeke said they would
hold a mass meeting on Wednesday to report back to the workers on their meeting
at the CCMA.
Amplats said on Friday, that less than 20% of its workforce
had reported for work.
"The company continues to urge employees to return to
work and requires that they do so by no later than the night shift on Monday,
failing which legal avenues will be pursued," spokesperson Mpumi Sithole
said in a statement.
She said the increase in police visibility had created an environment conducive for workers to return to work.