Oranjemund Strike ~ Monday 29 August 2011

Michael Alexander · August 29, 2011, 10:35:08 AM

Well, things seem different this morning, I noticed we never had any march past, I also see the strikers are still camped down at the MUN office , which is unusual as they are normally camped on St George's square by this time of the day... Perhaps, they are realizing that it's almost payday and they will only be receiving 50% of their pay....

Oh! and I found this letter posted on the wall at SPAR...

Michael Alexander · August 29, 2011, 10:40:22 AM

Saw this sms in a local paper..

"THE president of MUN John Ndeutepo must get his priorities right. He put in leave to go to Ghana while union members and junior leaders in Oranjemund are battling it out alone on strike. Where does his commitment lie? Ghana or the union and its members? The union in Oranjemund faces immense difficulties and its members are left directionless and uncertain while he has defected to Ghana to dine and wine there."

Mike Stenson (RIP) · August 29, 2011, 11:55:57 AM

Strike will fall in September pay month so normal payday this month..

Michael Alexander · August 29, 2011, 01:54:27 PM

Mmmh! If that is the case, then a change to put more pressure on the union has gone a begging....

Bob Molloy · August 29, 2011, 10:55:39 PM

Could somebody please spell out, in words of one syllable if possible, the strike situation so that this very uninformed Oranjemunder can make sense of it. And could it perhaps be done without demonising one side or t'other?

Some questions:
1. What is the union's point of view? Are they asking for more money and if so is it based on a) a rise in productivity and/or b) a rise in the cost of living?
3. What is the company's view and why are they not in mediation with the strikers?
4. Why should other union members not be legally permitted to strike in solidarity? Has somebody tilted the playing field here?

And one observation: the General Manager's letter is such a piece of saintly special pleading for fat cat shareholders that I almost wept. I couldn't quite think of an apt description but the word "mealy-mouthed" did come to mind. He's the GM fer Crissake, why does he feel the need to hide behind a wall of platitudes?

Alfred Boehme · August 30, 2011, 03:19:01 PM

We where told this month

Mike Stenson (RIP) · August 30, 2011, 03:47:55 PM

Hear the strike might be hotting up

Michael Alexander · August 30, 2011, 04:14:59 PM

Yes, I heard that also, they must have been informed of their reduced pay packets.......

Hear they did an extra march this afternoon to the PCC.....

Mike Stenson (RIP) · August 30, 2011, 05:12:47 PM

They were blocking the road when I came home, zoomed past them on the gravel side road.
Close your shop if they come there tomorrow...

SandyB · August 30, 2011, 05:59:30 PM

Bob ??? fatcat shareholders ?? Mining not so profitable nowadays ,,, perhaps ask Mike for a bit more detail ... O' mund has just been through a major slump and trying to get on its feet again ... saintly pleading ... platitudes ,, actually there is also the " soft side " to management ... appeal the the better in people ,, strangley enough I have found that it can work the better end up outweighing the not better .. , just my experience ...
At stake here is Oranjemnd 2013 ... POOF !! gone ..

or as they hope to do 2050 ... it requires all to buy into it by looking at the big picture ...

Bob Molloy · August 30, 2011, 11:51:02 PM

I'm still in the dark as to the cause of the strike. So far all I have picked up is that most commentators have a tendency to bash the workers.

Easy target. More difficult to resolve the issues. Input anyone?

Michael Alexander · August 31, 2011, 09:57:24 AM

Bob, in essence, the mine was giving the workers up at Bogenfels a remote type of housing

allowance. Some of These guys bought houses on the outside.... Roll on two years and the mine

decides to shut don the operations, claiming the diamonds are depleted... NOW , WHAT THE MINE

SHOULD HAVE DONE, WAS TO RETRENCH THOSE WORKERS, seeing that there was no work.But being the nice

kind of mine they are these days, they thought they would do the workers a favour and keep them

employed by relocating them back to areas based near the town of Oranjemund.... but now they could

not keep receiving a housing allowance, as they now had place to stay in town, so these workers

went to the union..... Now, the union has been gunning for a strike with the mine for the last few

years, one got the impression that they were trying to find any reason to get their members to

strike.... now they had one..... so they balloted, claimed that their 1200 members agreed to strike

and began to strike.... funny thing happened, only 160 strikers turned up...

Now the mine has an agreement with the MUN that if a strike was to occur, it should only be by the

effected workers, I think that this is the technical point that the mine is trying to use that the

strike is illegal.....That agreement also prevents indimidation of co workers and not blocking off access..... I think that if this starts to happen, the mine would have further cause to dismiss the strikers.....

The strikers are also now bringing in other issues, they are not happy with the mine being run by a

White South African, they are also not happy with the fact, that it was rumoured that a number of

the top knobs in the company were paid bonus's recently...... and they were not.....

The day's of the Debeers GM's being hardmen appear to be behind us..... I think Mike Wittet being the last.... others are more people friendly and perhaps thus place too much faith in those that surround them, eventually getting bitten.....

This is my take on events..... but I am sure somebody else can add...

Mike Stenson (RIP) · August 31, 2011, 01:01:56 PM

Just a small correction.

Only the effected workers are aloud to vote, the rest of the union my strike in sympathy.
The whole union voted so the company deems the process illegal....

The company offered to keep paying the workers their allowances in exchange for a small fee for the company housing. Most would have pocket a tidy some but they got greedy and wanted both.

Bob Molloy · September 01, 2011, 01:27:05 AM

Thanks Mike/Stennie,
Got the picture. Also agree, as Churchill said: "It is better to jaw jaw than war war."

The company has to take the lead here and pull the union back into talks.

Mike Stenson (RIP) · September 01, 2011, 04:16:32 AM

I think this whole strike issue was hijacked by a few with hidden agendas... Politics!
They think the company is still run by some colonial power.

At the ballot process the people were pumped up by mentioning all sorts of issues not related to the dispute then asked to vote. Clear heads were gone and they voted to strike.

They also cross that they work here..