JOHANNESBURG – South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has rejected a revised wage offer from Northam Platinum, the world's fifth largest platinum producer, extending a strike by over 7 000 workers, a spokesperson said on Thursday.
The strike, now in its fifth day, involved the workforce at Northam's Zondereinde operation, which accounted for the vast majority of the company's annual production of 300 000 oz.
"The new wage offer was rejected outright by our members today," said NUM spokesperson Livhuwani Mammburu after a mass meeting at the mine in the North West province.
NUM was demanding wage increases of between 22% and 43% and a rise in housing allowances of 69%.
Northam, which had already improved its initial offer twice, had offered increases of 7% and 8% in the first year, slightly above the current inflation rate of 6%.
NUM's hardline rival, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), was preparing for a possible strike against top producers Anglo American Platinum, Impala Platinum and Lonmin which could hit at least half of global output.
Northam was the only one of South Africa's four largest platinum producers where NUM still had majority membership after AMCU emerged as the dominant union on South Africa's platinum belt.
AMCU poached tens of thousands of disgruntled members from the once unrivalled NUM last year in a bloody turf war that killed dozens of people and sparked a wave of wildcat strikes.