The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) has welcomed the Labour Court’s decision to dismiss an urgent application by Glencore mine to interdict workers from striking at its Tweefontein and Goedgevonden operations in Mpumalanga.
The court dismissed the application on Friday on the basis that it was not urgent.
Workers have been on strike since the 4th of June demanding the right to take paid leave during the Christmas break.
Numsa Spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi -Majola says workers want to use the December holidays to spend time with their families.
“Glencore wants to deny workers the right to take paid leave in December. They argue that December is a normal month, and workers should work their normal shifts during that period. Glencore is a brutal employer. They have a laundry list of infringements against workers. They are notorious for abusing labour especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo and elsewhere, so we’re not surprised that they’d stoop so low as to force workers to work during their December break.”
