Sibanye workers score on premium payment

Sibanye's Kloof operation. Source:www.sibanyegold.co.za

The mining house originally offered the so-called premium to Amcu (Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union) earlier this month to avert a strike that would have put an end to Sibanye’s good run on commodity prices. Last week the gold hit a three-week high to trade at $1,254.76 (R18,758.20) an ounce, boosted by the weak rand.

Premium averts stike

The two have been trying to reach a wage settlement for some time, and Amcu called off the threatened strike after Sibanye offered the premium. The union was not a signatory to the three-year agreement for a 12% increase, or R675 a month, that was reached with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), Solidarity and Uasa (United Association of South Africa) last year.

A strike of 40,000 workers at a time when South Africa faces a credit ratings downgrade would have dire consequences for the economy. “We have said we want to offer a R25 monthly stability premium in the interest of peace,” James Wellsted, Sibanye spokesman told Business Report newspaper.

Other unions protest

The premium raised the ire of the other trade unions, who pointed out that Sibanye and Amcu couldn’t enter into an arbitrary agreement, but had to follow the prescribed negotiation route of collective bargaining through the Chamber of Mines.

But the issue now seems to be resolved. Uasa says in a statement that a three-year agreement, whereby all category 4 to 8 employees, miners, artisans and officials recognition units will be paid a premium of R25 per month, had been reached.

Premium backdated

“The premium will be paid backdated from 1 July 2015, when the wage agreement between the unions and Sibanye was signed with the exclusion of AMCU. The R25 per month premium will be paid in year two of the agreement as well but will be increased to R75 per month in year three.”

“This means that AMCU now also had to sign the aforementioned wage agreement which they hitherto refused to do,” the statement says.