The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) has decried the loss of life at platinum miner Impala Platinum’s (Implats’) Rustenburg mine, in the North West, in December and January.

Union president Joseph Mathunjwa told journalists on Wednesday that the fatal incidents at 14 Shaft were a sad moment for all workers in South Africa and a painful reminder of the price workers had to pay to earn a living.

He claimed that the tragedy that unfolded at the mine on January 22, which resulted in the deaths of four mineworkers, was the consequence of “clandestine observance of safety procedures and poor investment in health and safety equipment by employers”.

Four miners died at 14 Shaft after a fire broke out underground during the night shift, resulting in the four mineworkers being trapped underground. The other miners were safely evacuated from the shaft.

Mathunjwa said AMCU had established from its own investigations into the accident that the fatalities were caused by smoke inhalation. “The workers had insufficient resources with a rescue pack that ran out of oxygen while they were attempting to escape,” he explained.

Mathunjwa said the rescue packs only provided oxygen for 25 to 30 minutes but that international standards required rescue packs to provide oxygen for a minimum of 60 minutes, thereby ensuring the longevity of trapped individuals and improving their prospects of escaping such disasters.

“The current equipment used by Implats is cheap and a cost saving mechanism that is high risk in health and safety standards,” he asserted.

He continued by stating that there was no lifeline that could have assisted in transporting the workers to the refuge bay.

“The absence of an escape route is questionable in procedure and as a general principle in mine infrastructure. A thorough investigation is needed around the physical mine infrastructure and its compliance to health and safety prescripts,” Mathunjwa remarked.

Moreover, he alleged that the communication by line management after the fire was detected had been undermined, leading to the workers going underground despite the risk.

Mathunjwa said it was important to ascertain whether the company was compliant with fire drill procedures as stipulated by law.

“We are also concerned about the quality of training, if any, regarding employees’ readiness to deal with such events as and when they happen,” he added.

Mathunjwa emphasised that AMCU was deeply concerned that 14 Shaft had, in December, been issued with a Section 54 stoppage notice after two employees died as a result of fall-of-ground incidents.

“We call on the DMR to continue monitoring and enforcing compliance with regulations. Everyone who has been found to have contravened the law and/or acted recklessly needs to face prosecution and civil claims. No stone should be left unturned to uncover what exactly happened,” he asserted.

Implats corporate relations group executive Johan Theron told Mining Weekly Online that it was unwise to speculate on the reasons for the tragedies at this early stage, as the DMR would conduct an extensive investigation into the incident.

He, however, refuted the allegations that Implats’ safety equipment and evacuation procedures were substandard. “The safety packs in use at our mines are the same that are used in mines in Australia and Canada and are in line with international standards,” Theron said.

He also pointed out that about 100 workers were safely evacuated from the mine, which he said was testament to the fact that the company’s equipment and evacuation procedures were in order.

Nevertheless, he stressed that Implats would redouble efforts to achieve zero harm and had resolved to close the entire mine to engage the full workforce on its safety readiness and emergency awareness before contemplating reopening the 14 Shaft underground workings again.

TAX REFORM AMENDMENT ACT
Mathunjwa also told journalists that the union was opposed to the signing of the new Tax Reform Amendment Act as it “undermined the independence of the workers to decide what they want to do with their hard-earned provident fund money after retirement.”

He said the logic informing these amendments was “misguided” as the amendments sought to compel all workers to save for retirement annuities.

“These reforms are oblivious of the fact that, currently, two-thirds of the working population in South Africa earn less than the median earnings. The country is engulfed in a low-wage regime.

“These workers cannot afford to improve their lives during their working age and even fail to access bank financing to get loans to build houses or invest in assets in preparation for retirement. Therefore, provident fund lump sum payouts provide a great leap and last gasp investment for most workers who buy these assets at their retirement to leave comfortable legacies for their families,” Mathunjwa argued.

He commented that AMCU would explore possibilities to apply for a joinder with other organisations that have tabled a Section 77 application for protest action to the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) in terms of the Labour Relations Act.

“We will further seek to tabulate an AMCU problem statement to Nedlac for a repeal of this legislation for lasting solutions related to comprehensive social security and a viable social protection flow in South Africa.

“We will embark on protest action to ensure that this law is not effected. We, therefore, encourage the National Treasury to institute a moratorium on this legislation until all social partners have been consulted and a viable social security mechanism has been thrashed out and regulated instead of this piecemeal approach that only addresses one side of the continuum,” Mathunjwa concluded.