Share

Doing the math

Cape Town - Fin24 user Grant Mitchell suggests a method to clearly show what makes up the demand for R12 500.

He was responding to a call for debate on the platinum miners strike by labour columnist Terry Bell in his weekly Labour Wrap.

He writes: "Why don't you do a total cost to company for the miner that is demanding R12 500 per month. Then break his current package down (be it basic salary at x, housing at y and medical at z, tax deduction etc.

"Then in the next column of your spreadsheet do a breakdown of the new demands
so that the ordinary person like myself can really see where or what
this increase the unions are looking for actually is."

Terry Bell responds:

Hi Grant

That's a difficult ask since the companies are not always that forthcoming with their figures and various costs (or estimates of costs for something like living out allowances or hostel accommodation) vary from company to company.

Since the capex for hostels was long ago discounted and maintenance costs seem minimal, hostel accommodation should barely feature in these in cost to company calculations (but accommodation estimates often are).

Living out allowances seem to vary between R1 500 and R1 800. It sometimes seems to me to be a bit of a dog's breakfast dragged into the 21 Century from times long past and dealt with in an ad hoc way.

Anyway, since I do not have the resources to tackle the sort of project you envisage, but would also like to see such results, I have been talking to a couple of economists in the hope that they will provide. We'll keep you posted on Fin24.

Regards

Fin24 user

- Fin24

* Terry Bell is an independent political, economic and labour analyst. Views expressed are his own. Follow him on twitter @telbelsa.

Disclaimer: All articles and letters published on MyFin24 have been independently written by members of the Fin24 community. The views of users published on Fin24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent those of Fin24.

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
18.89
+0.3%
Rand - Pound
23.87
+0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.38
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.32
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
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