Att: The Editor – Business Day

Email: busday@bdfm.co.za 

YOUR EDITION MONDAY 19 JANUARY 2015 – “VIOLENT STRIKE AT NORTHAM MINE DRAGS ON” 

As we enter a fresh and bright eyed 2015 we see the first unfortunate violent strike on the platinum belt and we see that once again the union (NUM) is using their members as canon fodder. A union should know better! The members of NUM are being exposed to dismissal and in the best case scenario will be receiving final written warnings. Over 4,000 bread earners are placed under risk. It now becomes much easier for the public to understand why Cosatu is imploding and why the National Union of Metal Workers of South Africa are gaining in membership daily.

Unions are specifically entrusted to protect the rights of the workers. This grossly negligent behaviour by exposing the workers to dismissal, is completely unbecoming of any trade union anywhere in the world. Over and above the fact that this wild cat strike sends a message out to the world, once again, that we are not a good place for future business. We must also understand that the union has caused losses to the group of over ten million rand a day and in turn losses to our fiscus of probably a similar amount. All round the unprocedural and illegal strike is bad for the employees, bad for the company, bad for the country and bad for the future.

MICHAEL BAGRAIM

19 January 2015