JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The world's third-largest platinum producer Lonmin on Thursday said it was committed to concluding a new recognition agreement with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), while the union said it had decided to postpone issuing a strike notice to the platinum miner, pending the outcome of a meeting with Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe on Friday.

Lonmin and AMCU have been in negotiations regarding a new recognition agreement, with AMCU warning that its members would down tools at Lonmin’s operations if the parties were unable to come to an agreement.

While no agreement had been reached yet, AMCU had decided to postpone issuing a strike notice, following a call by the President’s office requesting the union to participate in the Mining Industry Consultative Forum, in Pretoria, on Friday, when the Deputy President would meet unions, mining bosses and government departments to discuss challenges facing the mining sector.

AMCU stated that it wanted to afford the Deputy President an opportunity to realise the challenges facing AMCU and to engage with other stakeholders in forging a good working relationship, particularly with employers.

“We urge all our members at Lonmin to remain composed and wait for the outcome of this engagement.

“We also urge Lonmin to use this opportunity and come on board…We owe it to the nation that the recognition agreement is concluded within the ambit of the Labour Relations Act,” the union stated.

“The company is striving to reach an agreement that is in the best interests of all employees and has made reasonable offers in discussions with AMCU in an attempt to achieve this. We are, therefore, continuing to pursue an amicable settlement and will continue to engage with AMCU,” Lonmin noted in a statement.

The company added that it would also reserve its rights and consider all options to ensure operational continuity and the financial viability of its mines. “We remain confident that an agreement can be reached through continued negotiations,” the London-based firm noted.

AMCU, which had come out triumphant in a turf war with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), currently represents more than 70% of Lonmin’s category 4 to 9 workers, which includes miners and rock-drill operators. AMCU is seeking to be recognised as the majority union at the company’s operations.

The union was seeking union recognition thresholds of 35% for basic organisational rights, 45% for collective bargaining and 50%+1 for the majority union.

Lonmin currently had two collective bargaining units, Collective Bargaining Forums (CBF) 1 and CBF 2. Category 4 to 9 employees fall in CBF 1, while employees in grades B to C – mostly skilled workers, supervisors and artisans – fall in CBF 2.

Unions Solidarity, the NUM and Uasa currently had binding recognition agreements with Lonmin to represent workers in CBF 2; however, AMCU called for a single bargaining structure for category 4-9 employees and those in grades B to C.

Lonmin said this request was problematic, as AMCU effectively demanded the right to collectively bargain for all employees, including those in CBF 2 where it did not enjoy significant support.

The union also wanted the miner to bring forward the implementation date of the next round of wage agreements from October 1 to July 1, this year.

Lonmin, who had not agreed to AMCU’s proposal had, in response, proposed an offer that was the same as that which it had with the NUM. The miner suggested thresholds of 35% for basic organisational rights, 45% for collective bargaining and 50%+1 to be applied to CBF 1.

The agreement also stipulated that the prescribed thresholds for CBF 2 remain as per the existing agreements at 20%. In addition, a change in the implementation date from October 1 to July 1, would only become effective in 2015 to give all parties time to prepare for the change.

However, AMCU had rejected Lonmin’s offer.

After recent mediation at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration failed to yield an agreement, the platinum miner requested that the matter be referred to arbitration, which had been scheduled for June 26.

Lonmin said last week it had significantly increased the number of security staff at its South African mines to manage growing labour tension.

Last year, illegal strike action forced Lonmin's mines to shut for weeks. The company had also headlined news reports, following a fall-out, in August, between police and striking workers, which ended in the death of 34 miners.