[miningmx.com] – The South African gold producers have tabled a third round of offers to the country’s mining unions in a further bid to reach settlement in the wage negotiations underway for the period July 1 this year to June 30, 2018.
Key aspect of the latest offer – dubbed the “CCMA Conciliated Offer’ – is that it provides further increases in the “guaranteed pay’ to be received by entry-level mineworkers over the amounts offered in the “Final three-year wage offer’ that was made on July 30.
“Guaranteed pay’ includes basic pay and allowances as well as medical and retirement contributions. The offer made differentiates between the gold producers because of their “differing economic circumstances’.
According to a statement released by the four gold producers – AngloGold Ashanti, Evander Gold Mines, Harmony and Sibanye Gold – the revised offer will ensure that entry-level, underground employees will receive guaranteed pay of between R13,728 and R14,611 per month in the third year of the agreement.
This equates to total increases for entry-level, underground employees of between R2,869 and R3,552 over the duration of the agreement.
The “final three-year wage offer’ made on July 30 ensured that the guaranteed pay of entry level employees would reach between R12,800 and R13,200 per month in the third year of the agreement.
A number of additional “non-wage’ offers previously made in response to union demands remain in place including increases in guaranteed minimum severance pay and in medical incapacity benefits.
According to Gold Producers’ spokesperson Memory Johnstone the latest offer means that, over the three year period, entry level mineworkers will receive increases of between 30% and 32% in their guaranteed pay.
Chamber of Mines executive Elize Strydom commented, “the offers made by the companies are generous, significantly above inflation and higher than any increases offered or agreed on in any other industry this year.’
Strydom added, “as the producers, we cannot ensure the sustainability of our industry on our own. We urge all parties to consider the situation the industry currently finds itself in and the long-term consequences of unrealistic wage increases. We further urge the unions and our employees to seriously consider this offer.’
Following rejection of the previous offer by the unions a dispute was declared resulting in the bargaining process being referred to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). The next CCMA meeting between the parties is scheduled for Monday.
