JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said on Wednesday that it is deeply concerned by the current consideration by the Minister of Mineral Resources Mosebenzi Zwane to put in place a mineral rights moratorium until the finalisation of the Mining Charter Three court challenge by the Chamber of Miners.

NUM said it was of the view that such a moratorium would negatively impact its members through job losses, as there will be no Section 11 approvals taking on change of ownership and new mining or prospecting rights.

"All of this is taking place while we are faced with enormous job losses in various operations amounting to close to 20 000 affected employees," the trade union said in a release to Creamer Media's Mining Weekly Online.

NUM said the proposed Ministerial moratorium "unfortunately emanates from his very own court agreement" with the Chamber of Mines on withdrawing the implementation of the charter, which he agreed to against his will.

The union would thus be submitting a request to the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) to desist from implementing the envisaged moratorium, with immediate effect, as the move would "definitely be found wanting by the court of law" owing to its deviation from the principles and objectives of the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act 2002.

The NUM said it was adamant the current impasse over the implementation of the charter had reached alarming levels.

It was thus calling on the government, either through the Presidential Mining Consultative forum or other multistakeholder initiates, to convene an urgent meeting of all stakeholders in order to find an amicable solution that includes inclusive transformation of the industry, including with employees and communities.

It condemned as "shockingly problematic" the silence of the State-owned Public Investment Corporation and Industrial Development Corporation as major shareholders in various chamber member companies and said "they seem to be passengers in this whole saga".

"The current cowboy-style battle between the Industry and the DMR will, unfortunately, have three guaranteed victims – employees, communities and the South Africans at large," said NUM, adding that it would be working around the clock in order to ensure all existing platforms of dialogue between parties were exhausted, with the aim of saving jobs and bringing stability to the mining industry.

"We again reiterate our earlier stance on supporting the much-needed mining industry transformation instrument, which the union and its members feel embodied in the current withdrawn charter. As employees we cannot continue being victims of retrenchments, low wages and fatalities, while government and industry slug it out in courts," the union stated.