JOHANNESBURG, March 15 (Reuters) – Harmony Gold Mining
, South Africa’s third-biggest gold producer, will give
employees who work at the rock face up to 2.9 percent of its
share capital.
The company said 33,000 employees below management level
would benefit from the scheme, which could see it issue at least
4.3 million shares, valued at about 1 billion rand ($133
million) based on Harmony’s market capitalisation on Wednesday.
Harmony’s overall black ownership is already at 36 percent,
above South Africa’s requirement that 26 percent of local
operations be transferred to black investors by 2014.
The five-year scheme is not the first of its kind in South
Africa, where the government is compelling companies to redress
the racial imbalances and inequities of the apartheid era.
Kumba Iron Ore was lauded for its employee share
ownership scheme when it paid out 2.7 billion rand ($360
million) to 6,000 of its workers at the end of last year.
The payouts marked the end of the first phase of the 10-year
scheme to benefit non-managerial employees.
Almost 9,700 such workers at diversified miner Exxaro
also benefited from a 1 billion rand payout after its
employee scheme reached maturity after a five-year capital
appreciation period.
(Reporting by Sherilee Lakmidas, editing by Ed Stoddard and
Will Waterman)
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