Implats and Amcu sign ‘stabilising’ 5-year deal

This agreement secures five years of stability at Implats’ operating entities

Impala Platinum has agreed to a pay hike deal that will see workers getting inflation-beating increases over five years.

Implats, one of the world’s leading producers of platinum group metals (PGMS), and the biggest union in the platinum sector, Association of Mineworkers and Construction (Amcu), signed the multiterm agreement on Tuesday.

Implats, which spent R18.8bn in wages and benefits and paid R19.1bn in taxes and royalties in 2021, said the settlement was effective from July 1.

The group, which employs more than 50,000 people across its operations, becomes the second miner to ink a wage agreement that promotes labour stability by allowing parties to find common ground without declaring a dispute or embarking on a strike.

Labour strife could throw a spanner in the works of a struggling economy that is dogged by load-shedding and is still trying to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, the July 2021 unrest, and the recent flooding that hit three provinces.

“This agreement secures five years of stability at Implats’ operating entities and has been achieved through a collaborative process typified by mutual respect and consideration and without requiring intervention or mediation by third parties,” Implats spokesperson Johan Theron said.

“The agreement removes substantial uncertainty for our employees and allows a singular focus on the pursuit of safe and sustainable production.”

In May, Anglo American Platinum announced it had entered into a five-year wage agreement with Amcu, National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and United Association of SA for aboveinflation increases for employees.

On Tuesday, Implats — which has mining operations in SA, Zimbabwe and Canada, and is listed on the JSE, with a secondary listing on A2X — said the deal assures employees of increases to “all major components of remuneration over the next five years including basic salaries, living-out and home-ownership allowances, medical aid and pension fund contributions”.

“The agreement is in line with current mining inflation of 6.5% and considers the reality of sustained inflationary pressures faced by our employees.”

Theron said Implats employees would pocket average increases “of 6.6% over the five year period”.

Stats SA said last Wednesday the consumer price index (CPI) rose 6.5% in May, breaching the Reserve Bank’s upper limit of 6%.

This is the highest reading since January 2017, when the inflation rate was 6.6%, and well above market expectations of 6.2%.

Amcu national treasurer Jimmy Gama said the deal was a “great achievement” for workers who had to battle with the costs of living — including food, electricity, fuel and transport — shooting through the roof.

He said lowest-paid workers would receive increases of R1,150 in year one, up to R1,500 in the last year of the deal.

He said the new strategy by Amcu to reach wage agreements amicably “goes with improved maturity and understanding between parties, and being able to put aside negativity and focus on what’s good for company and workers at large”.

Amcu shot into the international spotlight a decade ago when it replaced the Ancaligned NUM as the dominant union in the platinum belt.

This was after the Marikana massacre in Rustenburg in November 2012 when police shot and killed 34 protesting Lonmin mineworkers who were demanding better wages and living conditions.

Another 10 people, including security guards, were killed in the preceding week.