* AMCU says recruiting at Amplats
* AMCU claims to have over 15,000 members at Implats
* Turf war with NUM has taken 130,000 oz out of global
output
JOHANNESBURG, June 6 (Reuters) – South Africa’s radical
Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) said it
was recruiting at Anglo American Platinum (Amplats),
the top producer of the precious metal, a move which could raise
concerns among investors about a possible rise in unrest among
the workforce.
“We are recruiting at Anglo Platinum … we have been
invited by the workers,” AMCU President Joseph Mathunjwa told a
news briefing. The union has also started recruiting efforts at
Gold Fields, the world’s fourth-largest gold miner.
Mathunjwa denied allegations that the union was using
violence and intimidation in its efforts to peel members away
from the dominant National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
AMCU has already been challenging the NUM at the Rustenburg
operations of Impala Platinum, the world No. 2 platinum
producer, in a struggle that has taken close to 130,000 ounces
out of global production this year because of strikes and
stoppages.
AMCU represents the biggest challenge ever to the NUM’s
dominance among South Africa’s mining labour force.
The platinum sector in particular is seen as ripe for
recruitment because it does not bargain collectively but on a
company-by-company basis.
Continued…
