TAC, Sonke admitted as friends of court in silicosis case
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and Sonke Gender Justice have been given the green light to present evidence against gold mining companies in a potential class action suit by hundreds of thousands of miners who contracted silicosis and tuberculosis (TB) in their line of work.
The South Gauteng High Court this week admitted the duo as ‘friends of the court’ in the landmark case, allowing the parties to highlight the wider social impact of the gold mining companies sending workers home with debilitating occupational diseases without support.
If certified during hearings starting on October 12, the class action would be deemed the largest class action lawsuit against mining companies for the contraction of occupational-related diseases.
The 32 gold mining companies under the spotlight collectively represented almost the entire South African gold mining industry, with the case expected to seek justice for over 200 000 current and former mineworkers and their dependants.
“… gold mining companies have endangered workers, fuelled epidemics, impoverished communities and entrenched gender inequalities over the past five decades,” TAC general secretary Anele Yawa said in a statement.
TAC and Sonke planned to introduce evidence of the impact that mining-related occupational disability has had on the women who cared for the mineworkers with silicosis and TB.
Sonke said it would unpack its new research within mine-sending communities that highlighted the nature and extent of women taking care of sick mineworkers and the physical, emotional and financial costs they have borne.
TAC and Sonke’s application had been opposed by 18 of the 32 gold mining companies involved in the case.
Comments
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
For over 30 years, Werner South Africa Pumps & Equipment (PTY) LTD has been designing, manufacturing, supplying and maintaining specialist...
VISIT SHOWROOM
SmartMine IoT has been developed with the mining industry in mind, to provides our customers with powerful business intelligence and data modelling...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
