Canadian mining group Thistle Mining on Friday confirmed that it has issued a Section 189A notice of restructuring, at its President Steyn operation in the Free State, to the registered unions at the mine.
The Section 189A notice also includes a notice to defer wage negotiations.
The notice was issued to the National Union of Mineworkers, which has about 4 038 members at the mine, and Solidarity, which has about 701 members.
Section 189A of the Labour Relations Act requires notice to be given to relevant unions in the event that management is contemplating a restructuring that could lead to retrenchments or redundancies.
Following delivery of such notice, the company and the unions must engage in a process of consultation to reach agreement on a range of labour issues.
The company may not dismiss any employees during the 60-day mandatory consultation period.
Thereafter, the company may give notice to employees, taking into account
any agreements reached.
“Management believes this process is a necessary step towards returning the President Steyn mine to profitability,” Thistle said.
“It is the objective of Thistle’s management to generate free cash flow at its President Steyn operations by early 2006 at current gold prices and exchange rates,” the company added.
“A preliminary assessment would suggest that up to 2 000 jobs or about 38% of the labour force at the President Steyn operation could be affected,” Thistle said. — I-Net Bridge