Cape Town - The Department of Labour on Monday said a government intervention had helped secure continued employment for 650 workers at Highveld Steel who had been facing possible retrenchment.
The Department of Labour said in a statement on Monday that it had worked together with the Department of Economic Development to give Evraz Highveld Steel access to the Department of Labour's Training Layoff Scheme, part of government's broader response to problems experienced in the steel sector.
Lower demand for steel from a slowing China and a global glut of the commodity has hit the industry worldwide and put many jobs in jeopardy, including thousands in South Africa.
The statement said the SA government had worked closely with stakeholders including Evraz Highveld Steel management, the trade union bodies Numsa, Solidarity and Cosatu and the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) to identify the Training Layoff Scheme as an alternative to retrenchment.
It had also facilitated the application process and helped to finalise agreements between the Department of Labour/Unemployment Insurance Fund, the government skills agency Merseta, the company and the trade unions.
The statement added: "This agreement is an example of what can be achieved when social partners and stakeholders work together driven by the desire to preserve jobs, reduce poverty and unemployment."
The Department of Labour and Economic Development Department said it would like to "express appreciation to the management, the unions and stakeholders of Evraz Highveld Steel for their resolve to ensure the survival of the company and thereby guaranteeing employment to more than 650 employees".
African News Agency