Strike threat: Sibanye Gold takes action
Sibanye Gold has taken legal action to prevent the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union from downing tools at its Cooke Mine.
|||Johannesburg - Sibanye Gold yesterday took legal action to prevent the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) from downing tools at its Cooke Mine, 30km outside Johannesburg, in an attempt to minimise disruption ahead of today’s planned strike.
Amcu, which represents around 40 percent of Sibanye’s workforce, will down tools as part of its protected industrial action for higher pay at all Sibanye’s operations at Kloof, Driefontein and Beatrix Mines – but not at Cooke – and the company’s service organisations pending outcome of a court hearing on Friday.
Read: Sibanye Gold braces for Amcu wage strike
James Wellsted, a Sibanye spokesman, said South Africa’s biggest gold producer wanted the court to bar Amcu from striking at Cooke because it was a different legal entity, and negotiated wages as a separate entity. Sibanye acquired Gold One’s Cooke operations in exchange for shares amounting to 17 percent in 2013.
“We interdicted Amcu at 3pm; their lawyers will have an opportunity to respond. Amcu will respond tomorrow, and we will meet in court on Friday,” Wellsted said.
He said the wage deal at Cooke had been extended to Amcu because the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), Uasa and trade union Solidarity – which is the majority at the company – agreed to a three-year wage deal.
Jimmy Gama, the national treasurer for Amcu, had said the strike would continue today as planned.
“We agreed the matter will stand down for today, it will be heard on Friday. In the meantime those members at the Cooke and service operations will not go on strike. Our lawyers will submit a response tomorrow,” Gama said.
Amcu, armed with a strike certificate, served Sibanye with a 48-hour strike notice for the strike scheduled to begin at the afternoon shift today.
Sibanye penned a three-year wage agreement with the NUM, Uasa and Solidarity and implemented the increases to all employees, including Amcu members, with effect from July last year.
Neal Froneman, Sibanye’s chief executive, previously said the wage increases implemented last year were final and the strike would not yield a different outcome.
“We want money,” said Gama. “We have the strength as a union to fight, and mine bosses can say what they want to say.”
The NUM, Uasa and Solidarity have a combined representation of less than 50 percent at Sibanye, making it difficult for Sibanye to enforce the deal across the board.
“Uasa, Solidarity and Num had 49 percent representation in Sibanye. We were not able to get close to a wage agreement at the mines,” said Wellsted.
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