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Stop the strike madness

WORKERS belonging to the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) at the Lonmin [JSE:LON] Marikana mine this week went on strike for two days, costing the platinum miner millions in lost production.

They went on the rampage when the rival union, the ANC-aligned National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), showed little interest in vacating its office on the mine premises.

The strike surprised the company's management as they could give no reasons for it by noon on Monday, meaning there had been no previous talks about it.

This is not an issue which should have warranted strike action of this magnitude, no matter how badly NUM behaved.

Workers did go back to work on Wednesday morning, but Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant raised her concerns over the strike.

"I would like to appeal to the leadership of both unions (NUM and Amcu) to put the interests of the country and workers above their narrow interests," Oliphant said in a statement.

"The issue that seems to have stoked the latest trouble is the kind of regular issue which should have been resolved without resorting to such drastic action like the downing of tools."

Mining's most useless strike ever

This week’s Amcu strike over NUM office space will rank among the most useless in the history of South Africa's mineworker strikes.

Firstly, workers cost Lonmin millions of rands in lost production. For the company, the strike meant earnings would be negatively impacted in some way. This is shortly after the mining firm recently reported a nice set of figures.

Secondly, workers themselves lost a couple of days’ wages because the strike was illegal and abrupt. What a dumb reason to lose money for in the first place.

Obviously, workers are livid at the fact that NUM does not want to vacate its office in those premises when it is now a minority union.

But this does not make sense and shows ignorance on the side of Amcu. There is freedom of association in South Africa, which means NUM has a legitimate right to operate from anywhere.

Amcu leaders did their best to whip up worker emotions late last year, leading to the death of more than 34 miners in the hands of the South African Police Service units.

They should have learnt a lot from their actions last year, which had dire results. But it looks as if they want to repeat the same mistakes.

JSE-listed Lonmin is a profitable company and has the potential to be so for more years. But if workers will go on strike over trivial issues like this, we should start to question the calibre of Amcu leaders.

If strikes like these continue, the company might not be profitable in the future and this will affect the same workers because they will certainly be laid off.

So what are unions doing fighting for office space when they should be helping their company produce more to afford the double-digit salary raises they are now being paid, following the costly strike last year?

Ask if the company will be able to afford these salaries in future if these useless stoppages continue over the medium to long term.

Most likely not, given that demand for platinum has also waned in the recent past and an end to the trend is not yet in sight. The global economic downturn is still grinding on.

To avoid this craziness, unions should have discussed this office matter with NUM and the workers.

Amcu has made it a habit to go on violent strikes every time there is a pressing issue that needs to be addressed. This is way out of fashion.

This union should learn to persuade its workers to relinquish the notion of thinking their entitlement to strike must be used recklessly.

Lonmin remains among the few large employers that seem prepared to tolerate this continuing strike action at its mines.

Elsewhere the situation is grim. Other miners have threatened workers with retrenchments and the closure of certain mines because of violent strikes.

It would be a shame if Lonmin was forced by strikes to join the majority of employers and cut the number of workers due to extra losses incurred by lessened production.

 - Fin24

*Mzwandile Jacks is a freelance journalist. Opinions expressed are his own.
 
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