2% Union wants big Implats pay hike
Allan Seccombe | Tue, 09 Jun 2009 11:56[miningmx.com] -- SOUTH Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is demanding a 20% wage hike from the world's second-largest platinum producer Impala Platinum (Implats) as well as a minimum underground salary of R5,000/month. The demand from the country's largest mining union comes as labour negotiates a two-year wage settlement with the gold and coal sectors through the Chamber of Mines. The unions are demanding a 15% wage hike from companies operating in those sectors. The gold companies have offered 6%, prompting the NUM to threaten immediate strike action. The NUM starts talks with Implats on 17 June and it wants the settlement to be for one year instead of two. More than two-thirds of South African platinum operations were below water recently, with the platinum price around $1,000/oz and the rand firming against the dollar. Rand strength is detrimental to margins in a sector that has seen the platinum price drop off a cliff to about $750 from last March's high of $2,290. Platinum producers have cut back expansion projects and mothballed mines as cash flows dwindled. Anglo Platinum and Lonmin have cut nearly 20,000 jobs. The price has pushed back to $1,240/oz and the rand is at R8.15 to the dollar. Implats spokesman Bob Gilmour said the company had nothing to say about the NUM statement. "We haven't even spoken to them yet. We need to sit down with them and understand where they're coming from," he said. South African unions have stepped up the militant tone of their rhetoric recently, threatening strikes across a broad spectrum of private and public sectors unless they get their way. The NUM said it wanted Implats to bump up its pension fund contribution to 25% from 16.5% and the working week reduced to 40 hours. It wants a transport subsidy of R2,500 per worker. It is also demanding that Implats "put a moratorium on the employment and promotion of white women until there is a balance in terms of racial demographics".
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