Miner faints during Orkney sit-in
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has confirmed that one of the miners staging an underground sit-in at a mine in Orkney had to receive medical attention after fainting.
Around 69 disgruntled workers have remained underground for five days to demand an 8% salary increase, improved job grading and a living out allowance.
The North West mine belongs to China Precious Metal Company.
NUM president Joseph Montisetse says the miner was treated by paramedics, but refused to surface following the treatment.
"There has been some incident yesterday (Tuesday) whereby this worker fainted, and paramedics were sent underground after he had been assisted by paramedics he refused to go out of the underground.”
Montisetse says if the company fails to meet the demands of the workers, they will call on the mineral resources department to confiscate the mine’s operating license.
"Hence, we have escalated this matter to the department. They are government, they are the people who give mining licenses to these people.
"We said to them (the department), if these people cannot be able to assist in making sure the demands of workers are met, let them take the license from the mine and we will go and address our workers,” he says.
"Workers have said that if this money cannot be paid let the license be taken, so that workers can go out of underground and wait for another investor who can run the mine."