STATE OF THE UNION
Police, teachers all want to join mining union, Mathunjwa says
Amcu's Joseph Mathunjwa sets sights an expansions
“THERE’S a lot to be done and limited time,” said Joseph Mathunjwa, the president of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, who sleeps about five hours a night.
If his three kids wake up in time to see their dad at the breakfast table, their excitement is short-lived, because they know he will soon be on the road again.
“It’s meetings after meetings, engaging with comrades, that’s how you keep the union vibrant. You have to forget yourself and place the needs of other people before your own,” he said.
Mathunjwa is known for his headstrong approach to wage negotiations in the platinum sector, which resulted in a fivemonth strike in 2014. Amcu was also central to the events that led up to the police shooting of 34 people at Marikana on August 16 2012.
“The future of Amcu is determined by the workers themselves,” Mathunjwa said.
“If we are still in the cause of the working class we will remain relevant. The future of Amcu will not be decided by Joseph Mathunjwa, it will be decided by what we are doing.
“I still think we’ve got a long journey as Amcu, we have to work very hard.”
Mathunjwa said the union was about to start canvassing members over what they wanted from wage negotiations in the platinum sector this year.
“The demand is not informed by whether you like it, it’s informed by your daily experience,” he said.
“I don’t know whether the workers will still continue to say R12 500 is still our main focus, I don’t know. It will depend on what they give us to take to employers.”
Mathunjwa said the union’s intention was never to be destructive and it was well aware of the current economic conditions affecting the global market and South Africa’s mining industry.
Mining companies are cutting costs amid slow global demand. Lonmin had originally planned to cut 6 000 jobs, but after talks with Amcu it has now retrenched 87 workers and agreed to early retirement or voluntary severance for another 5 108 employees.
Impala has cut its workforce by about 1 000 to about 31 500 and Anglo American Platinum is also planning to cut nearly 2 000 jobs at its Union mine and Twickenham project.
Mathunjwa said there were retrenchment issues in the Northern Cape mines, which was also where Kumba iron ore was based. However, Amcu was not yet recognised there.
The job losses in mining have had an impact on Amcu’s membership.
“We are not listed on a stock exchange. We are not a profitdriven union in terms of how many subscriptions we have received from the workers [wedon’t say] if we don’t receive a [certain] amount in subscriptions then the business is not HEADSTRONG: Joseph Mathunjwa says he is determined to fight for living wages for his members OK,” said Mathunjwa.
“We lost members through restructuring, yes, but to me it’s painful because it’s about the family — the breadwinner who supports maybe five children and other [extended family members] who have lost the income.”
Mathunjwa said he did not see the National Union of Mineworkers as a threat and was willing to engage with anyone who was interested in safeguarding the interests of the workers.
But he said that on some labour issues, Amcu “goes east” and the NUM “goes west”.
“But what we see is the exodus of their members joining Amcu and therefore that shows that the pastures are greener on the other side of the fence,” he said.
The NUM, which at its peak had 310 380 members in 2012, has shed about 64 000 members over the past year.
Amcu has increased its membership to about 200 000 across all the sectors in which it operates, including construction and engineering.
Mathunjwa said he was frustrated about the issue of mine safety. “We are not saying that overnight there would be no fatalities.
“A mine itself is dangerous, but surely people will put heads together to say ‘This is wrong’ and start respecting the safety protocols.
“The life of a black man is cheap; I’ve said it in 2012 in Marikana.”
In January this year, four miners died after an explosion and fire at Impala Platinum’s 14 Shaft at Rustenburg.
The mine, which is expected to return to production in July next year, has been carrying out minimal work on the upper levels of the shaft. About 1 400 workers are back at work at the mine, while others were moved to the company’s other mines.
“How can you detect that there will be fire underground, [but] still make people go to work on [the surface] when you should be evacuating them?” Mathunjwa said.
Commenting on the January 22 accident at 14 Shaft, Impala Platinum said that after it had established that there was a problem, it immediately evacuated everyone from the top section of the shaft and initiated an emergency response.
“Upon evacuation and after assisting employees held up in rescue bays, it was found that four people remained unaccounted for and these turned out to be the employees that were tragically overcome by smoke.”
Given all its safety systems, which included instant gas monitoring, flame-retardant conveyor belts, closed-circuit TV cameras, fire detection and emergency dowsing systems, “we should never have underground fires”, said Implats.
“But, despite all these interventions, which also include emergency refuge chambers and personal safety packs, we still experienced this tragic incident, which clearly highlights that we still have to learn from this experience as a company and industry to ensure we attain our zero-harm goals.”
The government is in the process of determining a minimum wage for each sector, including mining. However, for Mathunjwa a standardised minimum wage in mining might not be in the best interests of workers.
“How can the leaders
of unions say: ‘No, this is enough for my members at R6 000.’
“Can I live on R6 000 myself? If not, how do I think it’s good for the worker to earn R6 000?
“I’ll never advocate for such a thing,” he said.
People should get a decent living wage based on their “everyday experience of basic needs”, he said.
“If I’m going to go to the shops with R10 and when I get there find out that bread is R11.50 . . . What people should be getting is enough money to buy that bread.
“A living wage will be controlled by your socioeconomic challenges.”
Some may call Mathunjwa too radical, too demanding and too hard-headed.
But wildcat strikes in the mining industry have decreased since Amcu gained ascendancy in the platinum belt.
Frustration among mineworkers led to a spate of unprotected strikes a few years ago. According to Department of Labour statistics, South Africa recorded 99 strikes in 2012, of which 45 were unprotected — most in mining.
But in 2013 and 2014 only 25 strikes were recorded in the mining sector. But in 2014 of the total number of strikes 48% were illegal, down from 52% in 2013.
“There used to be a time with platinum where they would say [they would] not go underground, and I said to them: ‘No, don’t do that, report to work, there will be a time for that,’ ” said Mathunjwa.
“So at the end of the day we consolidated the working class and gave them a direction and there are no wildcat strikes at Lonmin or Impala now. If there is a strike, it’s a strike that is legal and regulated.”
Mathunjwa said Amcu had the potential to extend its reach into every economic sector where it was needed.
“We’ve got a future in South Africa, not only in the gold sector,” he said.
“Every time you come across [members of] the SAPS, metro police, they say: ‘Why don’t you recruit us? Why don’t you open your scope because that is a union we want to associate ourselves with.’
“The teachers want to join Amcu, it’s because of leadership,” Mathunjwa said.
We lost members, but to me it’s painful because it’s about the family Can I live on R6 000 myself? If not, how do I think it’s good for the worker to earn R6 000?
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