JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Platinum producers Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), Impala Platinum (Implats) and Lonmin will “strongly oppose” the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union’s (AMCU’s) urgent application to the Labour Court relating to direct communication between the mining companies and their employees, the miners said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

The three platinum producers late last month started taking their offer, which would see workers earn a minimum cash remuneration – comprising basic wages and holiday, living-out and other allowances – of R12 500 a month by 2017, directly to its employees, in an attempt to end the strike that was currently in its sixteenth week.

In a statement sent out last week, the platinum producers said they had received feedback from a large number of employees stating that they would like to accept the offer and return to work; however, they were fearful of doing so owing to the threats to their personal safety.

News agency Reuters on Wednesday reported that four people had been murdered around the platinum mines in the past four days as some employees attempted to return to work, with the police having now been deployed to protect those who wished to return.

Through its Labour Court application, AMCU was aiming to prevent employers from communicating with its members about the wage offer that had been made to the union on their behalf, ascertain, by way of a survey, whether employees believe the offer was fair under the current circumstances, and ascertaining employees’ willingness to accept the settlement offer in principle and their willingness to return to work, as well as extending the offer which was made to AMCU directly to its members.

The union was sticking to its demand of reaching a R12 500 basic salary over a four-year period.

“The producers reject claims made by AMCU that any of the above actions contravene the Labour Relations Act, recognition agreements or employees’ constitutional rights. The application will be opposed on this basis and endorsement will be sought from the court for these initiatives,” Amplats, Implats and Lonmin said.

The companies also rejected AMCU’s statement that they were inducing or assisting AMCU members to resign from the union.

“The producers are seeking an end to the strike. To this end, the companies have tabled a fair, affordable and sustainable wage offer to AMCU. The companies want to ensure that employees are fully informed of the offer and are empowered to accept or reject the offer of their own free will.

“AMCU leadership has repeatedly indicated that the union will act in line with the mandate given by employees. Let us hear what employees want to do. The companies call on AMCU and its members to uphold the law, and employees’ right to work should they choose to do so,” the producers said.