South Africa’s giant mining companies were badly hit by a strike on Wednesday over rising power, food and fuel prices that threatened to bring the continent’s biggest economy to a standstill.
As global mining leaders such as Anglo Platinum, the world’s top producer of the precious metal, counted their losses, powerful unions prepared for marches across the country.
Mines, refineries, car makers, textile factories, businesses and construction of stadiums meant for the 2010 Soccer World Cup could all be affected. Workers and students stayed at home after public transport was disrupted.
Analysts say a complete shutdown of the economy could spook foreign investors and further dent slowing growth, seen at about 3% this year from an average 5% over the past four years.
”Workers have not shown up for early shifts,” said Lesiba Seshoka, spokesperson for the 300 000-strong National Union of Mineworkers.
The nearly two million-strong Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), an ally of the African National Congress, says the action was a warning to employers not to sack workers because of a downturn in profits due to a power crisis.
In the mining sector — backbone of the economy — workers are particularly fearful of job cuts after a five-day power cut in January and the rationing of electricity to mines slashed output and earnings in this top precious metals producer.
”We are adamant that workers should not be asked to pay for government’s failure to invest in electricity,” Cosatu’s spokesperson Patrick Craven said.
Political battle
Cosatu has previously said it also wants to fight President Thabo Mbeki’s market-friendly and pro-business stance, and has urged the government to subsidise essential commodities while demanding higher wages for workers.
Unions are much closer to ruling party leader Jacob Zuma, who is the frontrunner to succeed Mbeki as president next year. Some investors fear Zuma would mean a shift to the left.
Angloplat said its biggest mine, Rustenburg, had been hit by 30% absenteeism due to the strike.
Harmony, the world’s fifth biggest gold producer, said on Wednesday that all its South African mines had been affected by the protest, and it expected to lose up to 135kg of gold.
Car maker Volkswagen’s South African unit said it would have no production on Wednesday as a result of the strike, but there was no impact at the country’s largest oil refinery in Durban, officials said.
Metrorail suspended all trains in Gauteng as workers failed to show up at work.
The strike is supporting a recovery in world platinum prices , which have slipped sharply in recent days, though its impact has been muted by ongoing fears over the demand outlook.
South African markets shrugged off the strike and the Johannesburg’s bourse’s blue-chip index soared 2%.
The rand was slightly weaker against the dollar, but analysts said the move was merely an extension of a long-awaited correction after a seven-week rally.
”I don’t think it is specifically due to the strike, it is part of the correction that started late on Monday,” Citibank sub-Saharan Africa specialist Leon Myburgh said.
Threat of vandalism
Shop owners in Johannesburg’s central business district closed their doors on Wednesday morning after protesters threatened to vandalise their property.
A South African Press Association reporter on the scene said about 100 protesters were wandering through the streets of Johannesburg, even though there was no march planned in the city.
Diskom shop attendant Sevha Mahori (39) said a group of protesters tried to break into the shop in the morning, threatening to vandalise its goods if its workers did not participate in the strike action.
”We are trying to call our boss to find out of we should go home and wait for the strike to end,” he said.
Slow start to Free State protest
Workers were seen gathering in Thabong, Welkom, in the Free State on Wednesday morning for a protest march. About 1 500 workers gathered while waiting for more workers to arrive.
In Welkom the protesters were expected to march from the Phillip Smith Hall in Thabong to the Matjhabeng Municipality buildings in town. In Bloemfontein, the national call for protest action seemed to have had little or no effect as transport and business structures ran normally during Wednesday morning.
In other smaller centres in the province there was no visible indication of any protests.
Commuters stranded
Commuters in Johannesburg were left stranded on Wednesday morning as bus and taxi drivers participated in the stayaway.
”As we speak, there are no buses running,” Johannesburg city spokesperson Nthatisi Modingoane said.
”Normally we try to make sure that we have a skeleton staff in the morning, but today the drivers did not show up. We are urging commuters to try and arrange an alternative mode of transportation. We apologise for the inconvenience caused,” he said.
He said he did not see many taxis running either as he drove to work.
A Sapa reporter at the Noord Street taxi rank in the Johannesburg city centre said about 500 commuters had been left stranded.
Taxi drivers said the rising costs of petrol are affecting their businesses.
”The association spoke about this and they agreed that all the taxis at Noord taxi rank would not be working today,” said taxi driver Moses Mosemola, who was sitting on the pavement and reading a newspaper.
”We received a warning about not working today,” he added, but denied that he had been intimidated by anyone.
Some of the frustrated commuters had travelled from Pretoria and Midrand early in the morning when taxis were still running, but now they cannot commute to their destinations in Johannesburg.
Malebo Hlase, from Pretoria, was scheduled to write her learner’s test for her driving licence in Soweto on Wednesday.
”But I found no taxis in Johannesburg and now I can’t write my learners,” an upset Hlase said.
Another commuter, Brendon Smith, said Cosatu should have arranged alternative transport for those who did not want to participate in the stayaway.
”This is absurd. If they stop production everyone is going to face the repercussions and the economy is going to drop,” said Smith.
Taxi drivers did not want to say whether they would start working later in the day, but about 50 taxis were parked at the rank and the ticket box was open.
Electrical engineering student Samiksha Rampersadh (23) who lives in Linden and normally takes a bus to Wits University, said she would not be able to attend her lectures on Wednesday morning.
”There are no buses and sometimes, when you are desperate for transport, you can take a taxi. But there are no taxis either this morning. I am missing all my lectures,” she said.
‘Biggest strike’
Meanwhile, the South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) has also called on its 235 000 members to ”fully support” the national strike.
”Teachers suffer as a result of increased prices — like all other workers. We are a part of Cosatu and fully in support of the action led by the federation,” said Sadtu general secretary, Thulas Nxesi.
In Gauteng, Cosatu members would gather at the Pretoria City Hall on Visagie Street at 10am. They would then march to offices of the Department of Minerals and Energy Affairs and thereafter to the Union Buildings.
”Workers can rest assured that all those who participate in the strike will be protected by law except for those performing genuinely essential services,” said the union federation.
On rising interest rates, Cosatu’s leadership said the government should find other ways to deal with inflation, which has a negative effect on economic growth. – Reuters, Sapa