Mining Union Fights Petra on Job Losses
March 26, 25
(IDEX Online) - South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) says it will oppose any move to replace permanent employees at Petra's Finsch and Cullinan mines with outsourced labor.
Masibulele Naki (pictured), the NUM's chief diamond sector negotiator, slammed the move as "a brutal assault on workers to protect executive self-interest and shareholder profits".
The union says as many as 468 jobs are under threat as the company tries to reduce costs and global demand for natural diamonds remains weak.
"The NUM believes these justifications are pretexts to sacrifice workers and shield executives from accountability for operational failures," it said in a statement.
"A counterproposal submitted by the NUM, designed to save the company R6m ($330,000) and avert retrenchments, was summarily rejected by Petra mine management."
UK-based Petra announced last December that it would be laying off a then-unspecified number of workers as part of its "cash generation and savings initiatives".
The company has cut its pricing assumptions for next year amid "prevailing market weakness" and says the proposed retrenchments are necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of its operations.
It said at the time that the retrenchment was "an unfortunate and difficult decision," and that it had explored every possible alternative to possible job losses.
The NUM said it reiterated its call for the Minerals Council of South Africa, diamond mining companies, and the government to convene an urgent meeting with labour unions to address the crisis facing the South African diamond industry.
We have approached Petra for comment.