The unprotected strike by nearly 2 000 workers at the Bafokeng Rasimone Platinum mine near Rustenburg in the North West enters its third day today.
According to Implats, which owns the mine, the wildcat strike began on Monday morning without the sanction of the operation’s representative union, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
The mine management said as at 19h00 Tuesday, 167 employees had safely returned to surface and nearly 2 000 employees were still underground.
The company says the underlying source of contention is principally among employees and relates to several misinterpretations and misunderstandings brought to the fore by the recent change in ownership at Impala Bafokeng.
“The view that accumulated pension fund balances of employees can be paid out to employees. A view that statutory taxation provisions should not apply to award and/or bonus payments. Concerns pertaining to the historical employee profit share arrangement being converted, at the election of employees, into an employee share ownership trust,” said the mine spokesperson, John Theron.
Implats said its primary focus remains the health, safety, and security of the employees, and has since suspended all operations at its mines.
Despite facilitating underground access for the regional leadership of the NUM to engage with its members, the workers still refused to resurface and there are fears that they might be running out of food and water.
“Impala Bafokeng has implemented targeted emergency measures to safeguard the wellbeing of those participating in the illegal protest, voluntarily or under duress. In addition, support measures for concerned family members and friends have been introduced. The exits for both North and South shafts remain open and accessible, and assistance is available to employees electing to exit the shafts when they are ready to do so,” added Theron.
The company expressed concern that the protest is not just endangering lives, but livelihoods.
It said given prevailing low platinum group metal (PGM) prices, the financial sustainability of the broader PGM industry is at risk.
“This illegal protest action serves to aggravate this position at Impala Bafokeng, adding unnecessary additional pressure on the operation and, as such, its ability to sustain employment,” explained Theron.
Meanwhile, NUM Regional Secretary, Geoffrey Moatshe, said the union is concerned about the well being of the striking miners and convinced that some of the miners have been held against their will.
“From the conversations we had with the miners who resurfaced, it’s clear that people are being held against their will, by the people who were misled about this protest. They cannot be underground for more than 24-hours, it poses a serious threat to their lives,” said Moatshe.
He highlighted that the protestors demands are not feasible, and Implats has now declared the protest as a standoff and will find other avenues to end the impasse.
The mine was recently in the news, after an accident at 11 shaft claimed 13 miners.
