Mbombela Stadium talks deadlock again

Negotiations between the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Mbombela Stadium Joint Venture have deadlocked again after a six-hour meeting in Nelspruit, Mpumalanga.

The two parties were expected to sign an agreement to end the workers’ strike at the Mbombela 2010 soccer venue. Today, a dispute between the two parties arose when the employer proposed the suspension of some of the workers.

The Director of the Mbombela Stadium Joint Venture, Willem Meyer, has confirmed that they have proposed to suspend some of the striking workers. Meyer says they want to suspend these workers because they allegedly burnt down their property at the construction site during the industrial strike. Meyer says they hope to resume their talks on Monday.

Meanwhile, Cosatu’s provincial secretary, Norman Mokoena, says it's clear that the employer is not ready to resolve the matter. "We started the negotiations in the … it became pretty clear this afternoon that the company was digging its heels in … there is no progress towards settlements of the negotiations..."