Statement by the Honourable Minister of Mineral Resources, Adv Ngoako Ramatlhodi, on interventions in the wage impasse
07 Jun 2014
Ladies and gentlemen of the media, thank you for joining us this morning.
When I was sworn in as Minister of Mineral Resources on the 26th May 2014, it was clear to me that my first priority in this portfolio would be to end the protracted strike in the North West Platinum belt.
Much as it is not the Department's role to intervene in a labour dispute between employers and employees - South Africa has strong, credible institutions to carry out that task - it became necessary, as a last resort, for myself as the Minister of Mineral Resources to step in. We have always maintained that the work I have been spearheading does not replace other forums and institutions in place to resolve labour disputes.
It is impossible to focus on other critical issues in the portfolio without addressing this strike first. South Africa needs a sustainable mining industry, and we place that at risk if we do not resolve this matter once and for all. Once we can move beyond this strike, we can free ourselves to focus on other critical issues ailing this industry, one of the most important of which is radical transformation.