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COSATU saddened by deaths of mineworkers

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is saddened by the death of five mineworkers in two separate accidents at Harmony Gold this week.

On Tuesday, two workers died following an incident at the Doornkop Mine in Soweto. Three more workers lost their lives in a fall of ground incident at Joel Mine in the Free State on the same day. Harmony Gold said the incidents were unrelated and under investigation. COSATU sends its sincere condolences to the families and colleagues of the deceased workers.

Sadly, the deaths come shortly after Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Gwede Mantashe, released the latest mining health and safety statistics. Minister Mantashe noted the lowest number of mineworker deaths ever registered at 42, and that this also represented a 24% decrease when compared to the 55 deaths in 2023.

Notwithstanding, 42 deaths is too many for an industry that has set itself a goal of Zero Harm. Even more devastating is one company losing five workers in one day; not to mention the heartache for the families they leave behind and the colleagues who must carry on working after such a tragedy.

It is critical that Minister Mantashe ensures the department tables the long-awaited Mine Health and Safety Amendment Bill at Parliament as it will help strengthen protections for mineworkers and compel employers to tighten safety mechanisms.

COSATU is confident that its Affiliate, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), will continue to engage and work with employers to ensure they improve on safety measures as they collectively strive for Zero Harm. Also of concern to the Federation are the occupational diseases that continue to afflict mineworkers such as silicosis and TB.

COSATU urges all workers who have suffered TB in the mines or any other lung disease to follow the necessary process to check their eligibility to claim for compensation from the Medical Bureau of Occupational Diseases (MBOD). This also applies to ex-mineworkers who contracted TB or silicosis from working in gold mines during specific periods between 12 March 1965 and 10 December 2019. Should the mineworkers be deceased, their dependants will be eligible to claim for compensation.

Any mineworker who worked in the mines for more than five years is entitled to a free medical benefit examination to determine whether they have silicosis or TB as defined in the trust deed. Should they test positive for these diseases, they will be eligible for compensation. The amount of compensation will depend on the nature of the eligible claimant’s illness.

The Federation further wishes to remind workers that a person who works or has worked on a mine has a lifelong right to two-yearly medical examinations to determine whether they have an occupational lung disease. This service is provided free by the Department of Health.

Like NUM, COSATU is invested in ensuring the mining industry, which is a jobs rich sector, attains its goal of Zero Harm.

Issued by COSATU

Zanele Sabela (National Spokesperson)

Mobile: 079 287 5788

Email: zaneles@cosatu.org.za