Labour movements in the mining sector
Molopyane says organised labour movements in the miningsector largely reflect trade union politics in South Africa. Therefore, it is important that mining houses remain cognisant of what is happening with organised labour as a whole in the country.
She notes that, over the past five years, sector-dominant trade unions and federations, such as the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and its affiliate, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), have been influenced by “entrenching” of the politics of South Africa’s governing party, the African National Congress (ANC), and its alliance partners in the wider labour relations environment.
“This has had a significant impact on how [unions] carry out their work as organised labour representatives . . . Political lobbying by the ANC . . . has resulted in . . . in-house rifts within the broader church of trade unions.”
For instance, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) came into existence as a result of these tensions between the governing party and the workers, and has subsequently become a significant player in the local mining industry workforce, particularly in the platinum sector, at the expense of the NUM, Molopyane elaborates.
She comments that, at federation level, the NUM is caught in a “political battle”, which has impacted on the way it renders services to members. ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe has said in the past that Cosatu-affiliated unions are unnecessarily preoccupied with leadership issues in the ANC at the expense of workers’ concerns, she adds.
“AMCU has avoided formally aligning itself with any one political party, which has enabled it to avoid dealing with party politics and . . . concentrate solely on mineworker matters. This has been one of the major factors that has helped the union gain so much traction among mineworkers in recent years, as [the union is] regarded by many in the industry as being truly in touch with workers’ issues.”
Molopyane cautions that, in 2017, mining companies might run the risk of missing an important opportunity to engage with workers – particularly the younger members who are rapidly replacing older leaders in unions – if they do not correctly gauge the mood of their workforces.
“The new generation of younger mineworkers is more vocal and militant – more informed than previous generations.”
Molopyane remarks that AMCU, a growing force in the South African mining sector, dominates the platinum sector and continues to make steady gains in the gold and coal sectors. This, she says, might add to the existing tensions between AMCU and the NUM.
Another union to watch is the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), which was expelled from Cosatu in November 2015, Molopyane notes.
“There is a strong possibility that Numsa will organise itself in the mining sector or it could form a new workers federation with AMCU, which could be detrimental to the NUM’s membership numbers and result in new challenges between workers and companies, owing to the militant nature of Numsa and AMCU.”
Creamer Media’s Mining Weekly: 2017-01-20
