* Amplats, Implats say they not impacted
* Gold, coal sectors hit
(Recasts with amplats, details)
JOHANNESBURG, March 7 (Reuters) – The world’s two
largest platinum producers said on Wednesday they were not
affected by a 1-day nationwide strike in South Africa that has
brought the country’s gold mines to a halt and also hit the coal
sector.
Tens of thousands joined a one-day national strike on
Wednesday as the country’s biggest labour group, the Congress of
South African Trade Unions (COSATU), protested about new road
tolls and short term contract labour agencies that COSATU says
exploit workers and perpetuate inequalities.
Bullion producers Gold Fields and Harmony Gold
both reported that their staff who belong to the
COSATU-affilated National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) had downed
tools for the day.
But Anglo American Platinum and Impala Platinum
, the world’s no. 1 and 2 producers respectively, said
they were unaffected.
“We have not been impacted at all,” Implats executive Johan
Theron, who heads human resources, told Reuters.
Implats is just recovering from a six-week illegal strike at
its Rustenburg mine, the world’s biggest platinum operation, and
any stoppage would have set back the ramp up of output there.
“There was no strong support for the call to strike,” said
Theron, who said one of the reasons Implats’ workers had
shrugged off the call was “potential NUM and COSATU hostility”.
Continued…
