Ivorian union campaigns for gender equality in the mines

These issues make up the agenda of on-going workshops which began in April and will end in July. The workshops are part of the IndustriALL Sub Saharan Africa regional activities on women in mining.

The series of workshops began with the mining prospects for Côte d’Ivoire workshop which took place at Agbaou gold mine, 25-26 April in which workers from Bonikro Mine also participated. The mines are owned by Allied Gold Corporation, a Canadian gold mining multinational listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, which also has operations in Ethiopia and Mali. Côte d’Ivoire also has some of the critical minerals that are needed for the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. These included bauxite, lithium, and manganese.

The Allied Gold mines, which employ women as administrators, engineers, dump truck drivers, and occupational health and safety officers, have a combined workforce of over 700 workers. The workforce comprises 11 and 15 per cent women at Agbaou and Bonikro, respectively.

Over 100 women from the Federation Ivorienne des Syndicates des Mines, Metaux, Carrieres et Connexes (FISMECA), which is affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, participated at the workshop. The issues discussed included equal-pay-for-work-of-equal-value, the collective bargaining agreement with the mines, how the union is engaging the mines on the gender pay gap, and the beginning of social dialogue with the ministry of mines to discuss decent working conditions. Ministry officials present at the workshops said the government welcomed engagement with trade unions organizing in the country’s growing mining sector.

Participants applauded the current collective bargaining agreement which gave women miners one year maternity leave. However, some participants raised concerns that mining companies could use the long maternity leave to further widen the gender gap to marginalize women through loss of benefits and opportunities.

Zogba Karidja Traore, chairperson of the FISMECA women’s committee, said the union is campaigning for gender equality.

“Often women are excluded from training and not promoted especially when they return from maternity leave. This affects their wages which will remain lower that their co-workers.”

She added that FISMECA is supporting women candidates in the coming union elections so that they are represented in the leadership.

“The gender pay gap must be closed as women miners are equally qualified as their male co-workers. One of the ways to end this discrimination is to have gender responsive workplace policies as per International Labour Organization Convention 190 to end violence and harassment in the world of work,”

said Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa, who participated at the workshops together with the project team.

Union protests massive job loss at gold mines in South Africa

The march took place in Carletonville, Johannesburg, and comes after 3,107 permanent workers were given retrenchment notices, while 915 contract workers will also lose their jobs. The NUM said the job losses will impoverish mineworkers who support up to ten family members.

The union said it is surprised that the retrenchments are taking place when the gold price is high, and while Sibanye Stillwater, listed on the Johannesburg and New York Stock Exchanges, is paying millions of dollars in salaries and bonuses to its CEO, Neal Froneman. For example, Froneman earned R291 million (US$15,8 million) in 2021, R198 million (US$10.8 million in 2022) and R56 million (US$3 million) in 2023. The NUM said these amounts were too high for a company that claims financial difficulties as part of the reasons for the retrenchments.

“Sibanye Stillwater has been retrenching workers yearly to cut costs and make huge profits at the expense of mineworkers. The retrenchments are taking place even though the gold price is high. We are surprised that the retrenchments were announced just before the commencement of the wage negotiations with the company,”

said Mpho Phakedi, NUM acting general secretary.

The NUM, affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union, said over the years Sibanye Stillwater has put some mining shafts under “care and maintenance” as an excuse to retrench workers and the union is calling upon the departments of mineral resources and energy (DMRE) and employment and labour to investigate this practice. The NUM also says the government must enforce the “use it or lose it” principle with regards to the mining licences that the multinational is holding.

The NUM is also concerned because Sibanye Stillwater is amongst the worst mining companies in South Africa when it comes to health and safety as eight workers were killed in mine accidents at its operations in 2023. The union attributes this to non-compliance with the Mine Health and Safety Act, and that this was worsened by ineffective labour inspection by the DMRE which has fewer inspectors than are required for the inspections.

“Sibanye Stillwater must seriously consider workers livelihoods before embarking on mass layoffs. The concerns of workers and communities must be prioritised before closing the mines. Mining multinationals should not only be driven by the profit motive, but by environmental, social, and governance issues,”

said Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL mining director.

In a solidarity letter to the NUM, the United Steel Workers (USW) Local 11-0001, an IndustriALL affiliate in the US, said:

“The treatment of the skilled and dedicated South African workforce by Sibanye Stillwater is deplorable. We would like to convey our concerns as well as our support with the troubling situation that Sibanye has placed them in.”

Liberian union signs collective agreement

The CBA will benefit about 700 workers out of a workforce of over 1200. According to UWUL some of the gains from the collective bargaining agreement, which will cover the period from January 2024 to December 2026, include a 10 per cent increase that will be paid to the lowest paid workers whose average wages are US$250 per month. There will also be a US$50 payment for all workers in the second and third shifts, educational assistance for three dependants of US$110, standby allowances, relocation allowances, and electricity benefits.

The CBA also awards Independence Day bonuses which are paid on 26 July, when the West African country attained independence from the United States of America in 1847, and annual bonuses. For the first time, the union also negotiated for a five-day paid paternity leave.

An article in the CBA also includes provisions on workplace policies that are derived from International Labour Organization Convention 190 on ending gender-based violence and harassment in the world of work. This is the fifth CBA to be signed by UWUL with the Liberia Electricity Corporation. About 33 per cent of the workforce is made up of women.

Vacus Wilmont Kun, director of education and training said:

“The workers are pleased with the outcome of the negotiations especially the increase in benefits because these have monetary values. For example, the electricity benefits will give workers electricity coupons for six months during the rainy season and this contributes significantly to living wages.”

He further explained that the CBAs have made incremental gains over the years, and this has improved workers livelihoods and that during the rainy season the country’s hydroelectric power generating capacity was at the peak and workers would benefit from this energy generation.

“With the increasing cost of living, we always celebrate when unions negotiate wage deals that are above inflation and increase benefits as this eases the financial pressure on workers and their families. IndustriALL applauds UWUL for continuing the campaign for living wages in the energy sector in Liberia,”

said Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL Sub-Saharan Africa regional secretary.

Will Africa’s transition minerals create green jobs?

Experts say that with increasing demand for the critical minerals, there is potential for this demand to spur economic growth and development in SSA. This will be an opportunity for the countries, which are currently facing high levels of poverty, unemployment, and inequality to develop?

The critical minerals include copper, cobalt, lithium, manganese, nickel, platinum group metals, and rare earth elements, and are in high demand for use in the manufacturing of products that are required in the energy transition from electric car vehicles to solar panels and other components.

Researchers Thomas MacNamara and Siziba with support from La Trobe University and the IndustriALL regional office for SSA, went out to find some answers on how unions can influence debates and policy engagement on the Just Transition and on the job creation potential of the transition minerals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The four countries are major producers of the transition minerals with the DRC producing as much as 70 per cent of global cobalt while Zimbabwe has huge resources of lithium.

The researchers of the baseline report entitled Influencing a Just Transition in the mining sector in Sub-Saharan Africa say the green jobs must be assessed on quality, sustainability and appropriateness.

They argue further that, “Almost all sustainability advocates argue that the transition away from fossil fuels will generate more employment than unemployment. However, investigating their claims more thoroughly encourages that the jobs are quality (well-paid, unionized, and safe), sustainable (long-term employment) and appropriate (in areas where mining jobs are being lost and/or requiring similar qualifications).”

The researchers estimate that most of the jobs will be in the construction phase for instance during the installation of solar panels. They cite a Price Waterhouse Cooper (2021) study, in South Africa, which estimated that while 800 000 jobs were created in the construction phase only 21 000 jobs were retained in the operation and maintenance phase. In Zimbabwe, about 7,000 jobs will be created on lithium mines but more jobs can be created through beneficiation of lithium instead of exporting raw lithium to China.

In the informal mining economy in the DRC, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, especially in artisanal and small-scale mining(ASM) millions of jobs can be created. In the DRC alone, the ASM economy has over two million workers but without formalization ASM activities fall short of the decent work agenda.

The research report, which analyses the diverse definitions of what is meant by a Just Transition, and the complexities of COP processes, gives examples of different models and best practices of the Just Transition in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Canada, India and Indonesia, Italy and other countries from which lessons can be drawn for Sub- Saharan Africa.

Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL director for mining said:

“This research report shows that trade unions should be cautiously optimistic about green jobs and continue to demand decent working conditions in the critical minerals sector. Mineworkers’ unions have consistently fought for better working conditions and living wages and should maintain their vigilance in defending workers’ rights and interests.”

Influencing a Just Transition in the mining sector in Sub-Saharan Africa is published on this link and complements other IndustriALL publications that include A Trade Union Guide of Practice for a Just Transition.

Union forced out of May Day celebrations in Zimbabwe

According to ZDAMWU, an IndustriALL affiliate who organizes in the diamond and mining sectors, the union’s tent was destroyed. Further, one of the unionist’s mobile phones was forcibly taken from her after a brief abduction where she was dragged to a car by thugs who are known in the area. She underwent a humiliating body search, and her phone was smashed into pieces.

“It was a sad Workers Day for ZDAMWU. As a union we have been fighting harassment, long working hours, and corruption by some managers who ask for bribes for workers contracts to be renewed. Additionally, sexual harassment is rampant at Bikita Minerals,”

said Justice Chinhema, ZDAMWU general secretary who believes that the attack is meant to intimidate the union.

“Law enforcement agencies must investigate this intimidation and protect workers' rights that are in the country’s constitution and labour laws. Mineworkers in Zimbabwe have a right to freedom of association and assembly and should not carry their activities in fear,”

said Glen Mpufane IndustriALL director for mining.

Trade unions have raised concerns at the International Labour Conference on violations of International Labour Organization conventions in Zimbabwe especially Convention 87 on freedom of association and the protection of the rights to organize, and Convention 98 on the right to organize and collective bargaining.

On environmental, social and governance (ESG), local communities have raised concerns and said that although the ESG guidelines exist on paper, Sinomine never applies them. For example, the villagers say their source of water for drinking, market gardening, and livestock has been polluted by toxic chemicals as evidenced by the death of fish and aquatic life at Matezva Dam. Further, communities have lost fields and land to the mining company due to opening of new mining sites, road construction and the building of power lines. Some of the displaced villagers say they never received compensation from Sinomine.

ZDAMWU, which has 672 members at the mine, made a report to the police and will write to the ministry of labour to protest how the union officials were treated at Bikita Minerals.

Bikita Minerals, which is owned by China’s Sinomine Resource Group, is the largest lithium mine in Zimbabwe which is Africa’s largest producer of lithium ore. Lithium is one of the critical minerals required for the transition to renewable energy sources. Lithium is used in the manufacturing of rechargeable batteries for mobile phones, computers, and electric vehicles. Other minerals mined at Bikita Minerals include petalite which is used in ceramic and glass manufacturing.

Lesotho miners remembered

Tankiso Tsoeu, a data analyst at Storm Mountain Diamonds’ Kao Mine who survived the accident, says the vivid memories of the horror crash continue to haunt her.

Tankiso Tsoeu, a member of the Independent Democratic Union of Lesotho (IDU), an IndustriALL affiliate, remembers:

“On 8 February 2021, during the Covid-19 pandemic, our lives were scarred in a horrendous accident. We were supposed to go home, and excited to finally have a break and be with our families after working on a 12-hour shift for 14 days. The buses which arrived at Kao Mine at midday brought the incoming shift workers and were also supposed to take us home.”

“I was exhausted when we boarded the bus and fell asleep when the bus started moving. After what felt like a few minutes-although it was more than an hour- I felt my head hitting something, and lost consciousness. Then a colleague woke me up. I could see we were in a bus wreck lying on its side and workers were shouting for help. The driver had lost control on a road which had become slippery following a hailstorm and the bus had overturned.”

Tankiso Tsoeu recalls how workers were trapped in the wreckage.

“Whilst injured workers were rescued from the bus, unfortunately others were trapped. Some were even under the bus. There are no words to describe seeing someone lose their life while you watch and cannot do anything to help them.”

To worsen the tragedy, there was no mobile telephone connection.

“Amongst the survivors, most had lost their phones and there was no mobile network coverage. One of us had to walk up a mountain to try and find a network connection to call for help.”

The workers only got help when rescue teams arrived from Letseng and Kao Mines.

“Sadly, some workers died on the spot, while those with serious injuries were taken to Queen Mamohato Memorial Hospital in Maseru. Out of 35 passengers, eight died.”

The survivors received treatment at Letseng mine clinic and Kao Mine hired a medical doctor and clinical psychologist to attend to the workers.

Despite all the help she received, Tankiso Tsoeu says recovery has been tough.

“I am still battling. The most difficult part is that everyone expects you to be fully recovered after three years and talking about the accident might seem an exaggeration. Yet I face every day struggles especially with anxiety which never used to be the case before the accident. Recalling episodes of the anguish of the trapped miners often leads to sleepless nights.”

Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL director of mining and lead for occupational health and safety, said:

“As we commemorate the International Commemoration Day for Dead and Injured Workers, we remember the eight Kao mine workers and wish the survivors full recovery from the scars and trauma emanating from the accident. We commend the efforts of both Letseng mine clinic and Kao mine for providing post-traumatic treatment to the injured workers, recognizing that the duty of care extends beyond the mine fence.”

Lesotho union takes Adient Automotive to labour tribunal for union busting

Adient Automotive supplies car seats to BMW, Ford, Mercedes Benz, Nissan, and Volkswagen factories in South Africa. Of the 1,000 workers employed at Adient Automotive in Maseru, 800 are members of IndustriALL affiliate IDUL.

According to IDUL, the dispute began when Adient Automotive started ignoring the recognition agreement that it signed with the union in 2015. According to the law, a union must organize more than 50 per cent of the workers at a factory for it to sign a recognition agreement with the employer. The agreement gives the union the right to negotiate terms and conditions of employment on behalf of its members and to engage in collective bargaining with the employer.

However, the union says Adient Automotive flouted labour laws and breached the contract when it stopped deducting the union dues and remitting them to the union as per labour laws. Further, the union argues that the company’s actions are meant to frustrate workers. To stop the unfair labour practices from continuing, IDUL has raised objections and taken Adient Automotive to the DDRP.

May Rathakane, IDUL general secretary, says:

“We raised our concerns in meetings with the local management who told us that the decision to ignore the agreement was made in the US where the senior management is based. We are challenging the decision because it does not comply with Lesotho’s labour laws.”

Says Paule France Ndessomin, IndustriALL regional secretary for Sub Saharan Africa:

“Multinational companies must respect national labour laws and international labour standards, especially on freedom of association. Trade union rights to organize and collective bargaining must be upheld, and we expect Adient Automotive to respect the rights of the workers of Lesotho and to stop the union bashing and other anti-union activities.”

Adient Automotive, is a subsidiary of Adient Engineering, listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The company employs over 70,000 workers at manufacturing plants in 30 countries. Adient Engineering is a spin-off from its parent company, Johnson Controls, which issued shares to create the new company in 2016 and manufactures frames, seat mechanisms, foam, head restraints, arm rests, trim covers, and other vehicle seat accessories.

South African unions sign five-year collective agreement with Harmony Gold

The agreement gives workers’ wage increases that are above the rate of inflation. The cushion for workers’ wages is that for the next five years the inflation agreement is above the South African Reserve Bank inflation target zone of six per cent or less. Further, they have secured increases in housing allowances, employee share option scheme, and other benefits.

Harmony Gold, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, is the country’s largest gold producer with underground, open pit, and surface mining operations, and employs about 36 000 workers.

The agreement signed by IndustriALL affiliates namely the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), and UASA together with two other unions, AMCU, and Solidarity, is effective from 1 July.

The agreement which covers the gold sector was reached three months before the expiry of the current collective agreement. Unions said the signing of the agreement before a deadlock or dispute being declared is unprecedented and a positive step towards industrial peace.

Mpho Phakedi, NUM acting general secretary, said:

“This agreement is a milestone in that it protects mineworkers’ wages from high inflation and the increasing cost of living. Further, workers got increases in the living out allowances that they use to pay rentals for accommodation, and in housing allowances, which are for buying homes. However, we will continue to monitor the agreement to ensure that workers benefits are not compromised or eroded over time.”

Irvin Jim, NUMSA general secretary said:

“NUMSA wishes to thank its union officials and the regional leadership for their hard work in securing this deal. We continue to lead the way as a union which is fighting for improved conditions and benefits for workers and their families.”

Jacques Hugo, UASA chief executive officer added:

"Fair and reasonable adjustments are essential to collective bargaining. Five unions collaborated and negotiated on a united front for the first time,”

Glen Mpufane, IndustriALL director for mining said:

“We welcome the good faith that is evident in these negotiations. This collective agreement is a win for workers and for trade union unity. It is important to stress that negotiations shouldn’t always be about long-drawn-out disputes as seen in the past; they can also be done amicably.”

Nigerian textile union conference focuses on industry revival

Over 200 delegates from the private sector unions forum, the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Nigerian Textile Garment and Tailoring Employers Association, and IndustriALL affiliates from Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe participated at the conference.

The conference took place on the backdrop of a declining textile and garment sector. According to the NUTGTWN, which has over 18 000 members including self-employed tailors, this decline has been worsened by the counterfeiting of local Nigerian products, smuggling, and cheap imports textile imports.

These cheap goods flooded the market and made locally manufactured goods more expensive. The union said that the decline has also contributed to increasing inequality, poverty, and crime. However, the union identified industrialization and the transformation of the textile and garment industry in Nigeria as some of the solutions.

The conference also reflected on reviving a labour-intensive cotton, textile, and garment industry, and protecting current jobs. There were also discussions on what the union expected from the future of work in this sector.

The NUTGTWN said the effective implementation of national policies that included the Cotton, Textile, and Garment policy and the Executive Order 003, which supported local procurement by the Federal Government of Nigeria, and the Made-in-Nigeria initiative, were important in stimulating domestic industries, creating jobs, and reducing reliance on imports.

“The key to real transformation and economic recovery lies in manufacturing. The textile industry has potential to create over two million jobs and bridge the huge unemployment gap in the country,”

said John Adaji, NUTGTWN former president and co-chair for IndustriALL Sub-Saharan Africa region.

The participants argued that the enforcement of policies would also save the economy resources by reducing the import bill on textiles and garments. Discussions pointed out that intra-African trade through the African Continental Free Trade Area was key and trade agreements that included the US African Growth and Opportunity Act were pivotal to the revival of the textile and garment industry in Nigeria.

The union identified the following as key factors that will shape the future of work in the textile and garment industry: globalization, digitalization, information and communication technologies, demographic shifts, especially the youthful population, and climate change.

IndustriALL’s Sub-Saharan Africa regional secretary, Paule France Ndessomin, said:

“We applaud the strategies by NUTGTWN to organize self-employed tailors in the informal sector. Confronted with a huge informal economy, unions should explore ways to organize these workers as per International Labour Organization Recommendation 204 (Transition from the informal to the formal economy). The union must also organize workers in non-standard forms of employment to build union power and to also protect their rights at work.”

Trade unions march for debt cancellation in Africa

The march was part of the activities of the ITUC Africa’s 14th New Year School, which had over 200 participants from 31 countries. The demands in the petition, received by Brenda Tambatamba-Zambia’s minister of labour and social security, included calls upon African governments to implement debt management policies that are pro-worker, promote gender equality and are sustainable. The policies should also promote progressive domestic resource mobilization and gender responsive tax policies.

The participants included IndustriALL affiliates from several African countries and the IndustriALL Sub-Saharan Africa regional office and took place 19-22 March under the theme: advancing Africa’s transformation agenda – mobilizing for tangible trade union collective action.

The school composed of panels, plenary sessions, and commissions. Speakers were from the International Labour Organization’s Bureau for Workers Activities, academics, civil society organizations and trade union organizations.

The New Year School’s dialogue included strengthening inter-union cooperation and organizing, developing strategies against illicit financial flows, promoting social protection, optimizing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) for African industrialization, local manufacturing, decent job creation, and skills development, campaigning for a Just Transition to renewable energy and green jobs, gender mainstreaming, and union leadership training on sovereign debts and debt cancellation.

Other discussions were on Africa’s labour market landscape, organizing innovation and collaboration, and insecurity and coup d’etats in Africa as threats to human and workers’ rights and democratic governance.

At US$1.8 trillion, the sovereign debt constitutes close to 23 per cent of the continent’s combined Gross Domestic Product(GDP) and is unsustainable and disconnected from the African development priorities, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

ITUC Africa is part of the stop bleeding campaign to stop illicit financial flows – illicit capital flight, tax avoidance and evasion, trade misinvoicing, corruption, money laundering and other criminal activities. The campaign is being conducted in cooperation with civil society organizations.

According to UNCTAD, illicit financial flows are estimated to be over US$88 billion per annum and deprive African countries of much needed resources to end poverty and promote industrialization.

ITUC Africa and IndustriALL are in cooperation on the African Industrialization campaign and on union engagement with the AfCFTA.

Martha Molema, ITUC Africa president said:

“The burdensome weight of national debt, the deficiencies within the global financial architecture and the looming climate crisis are reasons why debt should be cancelled.”

Rose Omamo, ITUC Africa deputy president and IndustriALL vice president said:

“It is necessary for Africa’s debt to be cancelled to stop the bleeding of African economies. With its mineral resources, Africa should be the richest continent. However, with illicit financial flows, Africa is unable to use its mineral resources for development. This explains why trade unions are campaigning for debt cancellation and an end to illicit financial flows.”