JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South Africa’s AMCU union said on Sunday it is ready to sign three-year wage deals with the country’s big three platinum producers.
The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) said on Thursday it had agreed a pay rise deal with Anglo American Platinum, but had yet to say whether it would agree to deals with Impala Platinum and Lonmin.
“Members have given the leadership the mandate to sign all three wage agreements with the platinum companies,” the union said on its twitter page on Sunday, without giving details.
AMCU spokesman Manzini Zungu could not be contacted immediately by Reuters, but the union was due to hold a media briefing on Monday to disclose details of the agreements.
Implats spokesman Johan Theron and Lonmin spokeswoman Wendy Tlou said they would wait for the official signing before disclosing details.
Amplats and AMCU agreed to pay hikes of between 7 percent and 12.5 percent annually over the next three years, depending on the level of employment.
AMCU, known for its militancy and aggressive stance in wage talks, had pushed for wage hikes of close to 50 percent.
(Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Susan Fenton)
