The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) said yesterday October 8 that it is in dispute with Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold division after wage talks have collapsed into a deadlock.

“Despite gold selling at record highs of more than US$3 900 per ounce and management paying themselves salary hikes of up to 39% and multimillion rand bonuses, Sibanye offers workers a meagre R650 increase. The Union insists that the minerals belong to the people and, if the mines make money, then workers and their families must share in that wealth,” said AMCU in its official statement.

AMCU’s 2018 strike at Sibanye-Stillwater was the biggest seen around Merafong in many years, with several houses in Blybank burnt down and 20 people killed. Luckily, however, the current labour dispute between AMCU and Sibanye-Stillwater is still far from an official strike.

AMCU, along with three sister unions who enjoy organisational rights at Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold operations in the West Rand and Free State, started wage negotiations on July 14. This happened as an unusually short wage agreement for a single year had already lapsed on June 30. After a total of five wage negotiation meetings, the parties reached a deadlock and embarked on the company’s internal dispute resolution process.

“We have seen this approach before”, said AMCU President Joseph Mathunjwa. “Sibanye sends a junior negotiating team with almost no mandate to negotiate – their only mandate is to stay where their bosses told them to. This then leads to a very frustrating and drawn-out process, which inevitably leads to some sort of dispute”, he added.

Over the past few years, gold has enjoyed a powerful rally, driven by a complex interplay of macroeconomic, monetary, and geopolitical forces. From mid-2020 onward, the price of gold nearly doubled, rising by roughly 90-100% between June 2020 and mid-2025.

During this year it has breached record highs and analysts have responded by raising target prices for Sibanye’s shares.

“The gold price has been breaking records year after year, and the mines are making billions from it’; Mathunjwa pointed out. “Yet, when it comes to workers, they suddenly plead poverty. You can’t have gold selling for over R2 million a kilogram and still tell the people who mine it that there’s no money for fair wages. This is exactly why workers no longer trust the system … because the wealth they create never finds its way back to them”, he said.

AMCU says the current wage increase offer is lower compared to previous years, especially in relation to the gold price. They are also unhappy because senior executives at the mine enjoyed big increases.