Johannesburg - The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said yesterday that it had agreed on a two-year wage deal with Impala Platinum refinery following last week’s strike involving 500 union members.
The union said the deal was struck on Friday after more than half of employees downed tools last Tuesday for higher pay. The company said the settlement would instil stability for the next two years.
The union said the parties agreed to increase the monthly basic wages by between 7.5 percent to 10 percent over the period, with entry-level employees getting the higher percentage.
The two-year agreement is effective from July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2018.
The NUM’s Impala Platinum Refineries deputy branch secretary, Mpho Mere, said the increase was a landmark victory for the union. “We have achieved a major victory considering that before the strike the company’s proposed increases were lower than those we have now agreed to. Had we not gone on strike, we would not have received the increases.”
Mere said the lowest paid employee in the bargaining unit included senior process operators whose monthly basic salary was R8 273.
Dangerous
“Senior employees in the bargaining unit comprised senior artisans, senior process controllers and some human resources officers whose monthly basic salaries were R16 120,” Mere said.
He said, however, that the wage deal was not enough considering that mining platinum was dangerous.
“A lot of our members are healthy when they join the company, but in a matter of two years they become sick because of the hazardous working environment. The medical aid increase is not enough,” Mere said.
Impala Platinum spokesman Johan Theron said the wage agreement provided a reasonable compromise. “We now look forward to the stability and certainty that this wage agreement will provide.”
BUSINESS REPORT