The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Wednesday said it is still consulting with its lawyers on whether to go ahead in seeking a court interdict to stop gold-miner Harmony Gold from retrenching workers.
NUM spokesperson Moferefere Lekorotsoana said the union is still not sure whether it will go ahead in seeking the interdict against the company.
“We have been consulting with our lawyers since Tuesday and we are currently still consulting as we speak,” Ntuli said.
Minister of Minerals and Energy Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka met with NUM representatives on Tuesday to discuss job losses in the mining industry, the Department of Minerals and Energy said in a statement on Tuesday.
The parties agreed on the importance of implementing social plans, with the focus to be put on addressing problems facing labour, ensuring that all mining companies comply with the requirements of the social and labour plans, and the need for mineworkers to be reskilled after being retrenched.
The minister and union also agreed that they will revive the mining sector partnership committee, to look at necessary interventions to address the job problems.
Meanwhile, Harmony has started the process of retrenching NUM members at five of its operations in the Free State, Harmony spokesperson Brenton Saunders said on Tuesday.
So far, more than 600 NUM members have been issued with retrenchment notices.
On March 14 and 15 this year, Harmony issued Section 189 notices of restructuring to unions and staff associations at five operations.
The Welkom 1, which employs 526 people, St Helena (817 people), Nyala (1 003 people), Masimong (669 people) and the Bambanani (1 899 workers) gold mines were issued with notices.
The notices of restructuring affect 4 914 miners.
The NUM represents about 78% of the affected 4 914 miners, Saunders said.
Harmony has put the cost of the restructuring and retrenchments at about R150-million.
The group will start to issue retrenchment notices to Solidarity and the United Association of South Africa (Uasa) members on Thursday. — I-Net Bridge