Unions+to+fight+De+Beers+layoffs,+Amy+Musgrave,+Business+Day

Business Day, Johannesburg, 13 November 2006
=Unions to fight De Beers layoffs=


 * Amy Musgrave**

THERE is growing opposition to retrenchments at De Beers, with both the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the South African Communist Party (SACP) saying they will back the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in any action it decides to take.

As many as 1124 out of the about 7100 people De Beers employs in SA may lose their jobs.

NUM general secretary Frans Baleni said the union was hoping to meet De Beers management this week and its legal team was looking into the matter.

He did not rule out the possibility of a legal strike to protest against the retrenchments.

De Beers Consolidated Mines announced earlier this month that it would possibly retrench 398 of its Kimberley mine’s 823 employees.

This followed a full review of tailings resources at the mine, which confirmed the number of carats mined was fewer than had been estimated. This resulted in the number of expected carats being reduced from 13% to 7% of its total annual carat production until 2013.

De Beers spokesman Tom Tweedy said on Friday up to 535 of Namaqualand’s 2319 workers could be retrenched.

He said there would also be retrenchments at Cullinan, but the number was not known yet.

A total of 200 jobs would be affected at the company’s head office in Johannesburg, but the changes did not include retrenchments.

De Beers employs more than 7000 people in De Beers Consolidated Mines.

De Beers, which is the world’s biggest diamond company, said that four of its six South African mines would lose money this year after production fell and costs rose.

Cosatu spokesman Patrick Craven spoke out against the retrenchments on Friday.

“Cosatu agrees with the NUM that in the context of the already unacceptable levels of unemployment, there can be no justification for retrenching workers who are part of such a profitable sector of the economy,” Craven said.

The SACP in Northern Cape said it was outraged by the retrenchments and called on NUM to challenge them.

Solidarity said the layoffs would be De Beers’ third round of staff retrenchments in the past two years.


 * From: http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/national.aspx?ID=BD4A316507**

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