By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
A three-month strike at Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold operations is finally over after unions signed the company’s latest offer.
Workers at Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold operations downed tools earlier this year after the two parties failed to agree on wage increases.
The wage agreement was supposed to have been signed on June 6 after intervention by the Commission of Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). The CCMA’s intervention had been requested by Sibanye-Stillwater.
Following the CCMA’s mediation, unions were given the mandate to accept a three year deal, offering a R1,000 per month increase in the first year and then increasing to R900/month and R750/month in the second and third years respectively.
This was equal to an average 6.3% increase over the three years while artisans and miners were offered a 5%, 5.5% and 5% wage uplift over the period. But this category of employee was excluded from the ex-gratia payment which was intended only for category 4 to 8 employees.
As a result, the NUM and AMCU decided not to sign the agreement. They also cavilled the extension of the wage agreement terms to UASA and Solidarity, unions that had joined a negotiating coalition with NUM and AMCU before accepting an offer from Sibanye-Stillwater.
The company’s spokesperson James Wellsted says they can now resume operations.
“We still need to ensure that the operations are suitable and safe, so that we can start calling back employees. We are very pleased that the strike is now over and people can now start working and earning their wages again.
With the agreement signed, attention now turns to getting Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold mines back into production, as well as the conclusion of wage talks between the company and unions at its platinum group metal operations.