Solidarity lodges complaint to Deputy President's office against Patrice Motsepe
Trade union Solidarity lodged a complaint to the office of Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe's against Assmang, a joint venture between African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) and Assore. Solidarity calls on Patrice Motsepe, executive chairman of ARM, to explain his company's breach of the framework agreement for a sustainable mining industry at the next session of the Mining Forum chaired by Motlanthe.
Gideon du Plessis, Solidarity General Secretary, says the trade union is forced to lodge the complaint due to Assmang's stubborn enforcement of the "winner-takes-all" principle, which is one of the underlying reasons for the crisis in the mining industry. ‘On Friday, Solidarity made a final attempt to dissuade Assmang to enforce a trade union majoritarian agreement concluded with NUM's Northern Cape branch, thereby violating Solidarity's constitutional rights to represent its members.'
The Assmang/NUM majoritarian agreement had been concluded in terms of the controversial section 18 of the Labour Relations Act that makes provision for the "winner-takes-all" principle. In its investigation into the causes of the Marikana incident undertaken by Deputy President Motlanthe's Multiparty Forum in 2013, the "winner-takes-all principle" had been identified as one of the underlying reasons that had led to the tensions between trade unions and the violence the labour unrest had fuelled.
The final outcome of its investigations was the signing of the framework agreement for a sustainable mining industry on 3 July 2013 by organised labour, business and government, which makes provision for an amendment to section 18 by abolishing the winner-takes-all principle as embodied in clause 5.3 of the agreement. Amcu has failed to sign the agreement. Assmang, as well as NUM, is bound to the agreement and as signatories to the agreement they confirmed that the section in the Act could be unconstitutional."
Du Plessis says there were already indications at the last session of the mining forum in November 2013 that ARM, through Assmang, was not adhering to the framework agreement.
In 2013, Solidarity had also lodged a complaint at Motlanthe's office against Lonmin after this mining house, too, had failed to comply with the framework agreement after having concluded a winner-takes-all agreement with Amcu. Du Plessis says Lonmin has since made definite attempts to ensure Solidarity's recognition at the company despite the agreement concluded with Amcu.
The letter to Deputy President Motlanthe follows below:
Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe
Office of the Deputy President
The Presidency - Republic of South Africa
Union Buildings
Honourable Deputy President Motlanthe
African Rainbow Minerals/Assmang - Section 18 Majoritarian Dispute
Assmang, a wholly owned subsidiary of African Rainbow Minerals, is currently enforcing an agreement entered into between the company and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in terms of the controversial section 18 of the Labour Relations Act (LRA). In terms of this agreement, the NUM will be recognised as the sole bargaining agent for all employees employed by Assmang in the Northern Cape. The end result will be that both Solidarity and Amcu would be prevented from representing their members at the said workplace. This action by the company gives rise to union tension and creates instability of industrial relations, the very issues the Framework Agreement for a Sustainable Mining Industry aimed to address. It is for this reason that clause 5.3 of the agreement makes provision for a review of section 18 of the LRA given that it is perceived to be unconstitutional and it was one of the underlying causes of the Marikana incident.
A similar dispute occurred at Lonmin when the company and Amcu had signed a similar section 18 agreement that excluded Solidarity, the NUM and Uasa. This matter was raised at the Mining Sector Stakeholders Consultative Forum on 8 November 2014 and Lonmin should be praised for its positive response to rectify their mistake.
In light of the above, Solidarity is requesting the honourable Deputy President to invite Mr Patrice Motsepe, the Executive Chairman of African Rainbow Minerals and Assmang to attend the next mining stakeholders forum meeting to explain his company's decision to act in breach of the all-important Framework Agreement.
Yours faithfully
_______________________
GIDEON DU PLESSIS
GENERAL SECRETARY - SOLIDARITY
Statement issued by Gideon du Plessis, General Secretary - Solidarity, February 2 2014
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