Johannesburg - The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) says its concerned about its continuous loss of members.
During a recent National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, union leaders agreed to introduce a new self-administrated membership system and recruitment strategy in order to deal with the decline.
Num has been on a downward spiral since the emergence of rival union, Amcu, in the mining industry over 5 years ago and the difficulties faced by the sector currently were also worsening the situation.
“We attribute this loss of membership mainly to the decline of the mining industry itself although we cannot shy away from the fact that there is more competition for membership than it was a decade ago,” said NUM general secretary David Sipunzi in a statement.
The union’s NEC also discussed Sibanye Gold's R25 wage increase deal reached with Amcu outside the chamber of mines bargaining council.
NUM reiterated its stance that the agreement, although reached to avert a strike, would create anomalies as it undermined centralised bargaining.
“We are saying to Sibanye, ‘be warned’. You have started it, you must stand for it. The NUM is not going to amend a Chamber of Mines agreement outside that forum,” Sipunzi said.
The structure further agreed the union would support Gupta family owned business, Oakbay’s fight with SA’s four banks which cut ties with the company following recent controversial political revelations about the family.
The NEC was concerned that workers would be victimised because of the dispute between the banks and the family.
“We say that if banks want to influence the political direction of the country, they must not do so at the expense of workers. Workers must not be pawns in the war of who succeeds in capturing the state between Standard Bank, Nedbank, Absa and First National Bank (FNB) on one hand and Oakbay Investments on the other,” Sipunzi explained.
Labour Bureau