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The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is concerned about potential retrenchments having been announced by diversified miner Glencore and Samancor at their South African ferrochrome operations.
The proposed job cuts are owing to economic pressure, as a result of high electricity tariffs and a decline in ferrochrome prices, among other factors.
The NUM says it is trying to negotiate a viable solution to the electricity cost challenges.
NUM chief negotiator Lefty Mashego says the union wants all stakeholders to collaborate in finding a sustainable solution for the industry.
The NUM calls on Glencore and Samancor to cease using the threat of job losses and reconsider their commitment to South Africa. “Should they decide they are no longer able to operate, they must surrender their mining and operating licences,” Mashego states.
The jobs at the ten smelters, including Glencore’s Boshoek, Wonderkop and Lion facilities, as well as Samancor’s Ferrometals, Middelburg Ferrochrome, Tubatse Ferrochrome, Tubatse Alloys, Dikwena and TC Smelter, are all vital to the economic stability of the communities that depend on them, the union states.