Amcu’s decision to strike unfortunate: Sibanye Gold

This came as the union on Monday served the company with a 48-hour notice to commence industrial action on Wednesday in respect of the 2015 wage negotiations.

Amcu held a central mass meeting on Sunday at Masizakhele Stadium in Driefontein, near Sibanye Gold in Carltonville to update members about the gold wage negotiations and the case which Amcu lost at the Labour Court.

Last month, the Labour Appeal Court dismissed an application by Amcu to appeal an interdict preventing a strike by the union at the gold producers, where it was not in the majority.

It was at this meeting that a decision was taken to down tools indefinitely until the demand for a R12,500 wage was met.

Sibanye chief executive, Neal Froneman, in a shareholders advisory, said Amcu’s decision was “unfortunate”.

“The decision taken by the Amcu leadership is unfortunate, particularly coming after such an extended period following agreement on wages, which was reached with the three other representative unions at Sibanye, in October 2015. In the interest of a harmonious working environment and sustainable operations, a decision was taken to implement the wage increases to all employees, including Amcu members, retrospectively from July 2015. We wish to advise that the wage increases implemented in 2015 are final and the decision taken by the Amcu leadership will not yield a different outcome,” Froneman said.

In November, Sibanye said that it would not hold further wage talks with Amcu over wages, saying its members should accept a pay agreement signed with other unions.

Froneman added that Sibanye would work with other relevant stakeholders to ensure that the industrial action was conducted peacefully, within the framework of the agreed strike rules and in accordance with the law.

Amcu’s spokesperson, Manzini Zungu, said the union was striking for the long-standing issue of salary increases to R12,500.

Asked how many members Amcu have at Sibanye, Manzini said the numbers were not important but the strike would be big.

“Let us see who is the majority when the strike commences. Sibanye always cooks the books and say we are the third largest union, but we will see on Wednesday,” Zungu said.

The Competition Tribunal last month approved Sibanye Gold’s plan to acquire Anglo American Platinum’s labour-intensive and costly Rustenburg mines and Aquarius Platinum.

About 250 jobs would be lost at the Rustenburg Platinum mines, while 14 jobs were expected to be shed at Aquarius Platinum mine.

A further 260 jobs were expected to be cut should Sibanye combine all its mining operations and head offices with the target companies, causing an overlap of important positions.

Amcu said that it was against plans by Sibanye to cut more than 500 jobs at the company’s recently acquired platinum mines. - ANA