Progress in wage talks bodes well for settlement at platinum mines
THE platinum sector could avoid a protracted wage strike as it had in 2014 with good progress being made in talks about pay increases, said Joseph Mathunjwa, the president of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union.The talks could be concluded this month, he said on the sidelines of the Jo’burg Indaba mining conference. He said lessons had been learnt in the failed 2013 talks that resulted in a five-month shutdown of platinum mines around Rustenburg. The strike took a million ounces of platinum out of production."The talks have been constructive and objective. We cannot compare these talks to those in 2013. That was Afghanistan. This is more like a ceasefire," he said. "Business is saying, yes, this time, something has to be done on the social front and workers cannot be treated as a cost but [should be] an asset."Chris Griffith, the CEO of Anglo American Platinum, told Bloomberg the parties in the talks were not "too far from settling" and that he was "comfortable" wi...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.