Workers in South Africa’s gold sector rejected the latest offer for a pay raise of between 8% and 10% and vowed to soon escalate the dispute, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said on Tuesday.
Three South African unions are holding talks with gold producers under the guidance of a mediator after failing to agree on wage increases. The unions have warned they could strike if negotiations fail.
”NUM has this morning rejected the Chamber of Mines’ offer of between 8% and 10% from gold employers and will escalate the dispute on July 21,” NUM spokesperson Lesiba Seshoka said.
The union — South Africa’s biggest mineworkers body — received the improved offer on Monday but said the increase might not be enough to avert a strike.
The wage talks are being watched closely by markets because a strike could affect production, mining shares or metal prices.
The Solidarity labour union said separately on Tuesday it had also rejected a fresh offer for workers it represents.
It said AngloGold Ashanti, Gold Fields and Rand Uranium offered a wage increase of 8,5% for some workers, while Harmony offered a wage increase of 6,5% and an additional boost linked to the price of gold.
The unions have now warned that the next round of negotiations on July 21 may be the last chance for the gold firms to stop a strike.
”We’ve said to them we see this now as the last opportunity. If there’s no improved offer by next Tuesday, we’ll ask for a strike certificate,” Solidarity spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans told Reuters.
Mine workers, whose lowest-earning members earn R3 300 a month, have demanded a 15% pay rise, arguing the price of gold is up despite the global economic downturn.
But gold firms say they can’t afford the increase, which is nearly twice South Africa’s consumer inflation of 8%.
South Africa is the world’s number three gold producer, and the mining sector is subject to intense scrutiny by big foreign groups such as Anglo American, South Africa’s biggest mining player. – Reuters