Members, dressed in NUM regalia, held placards voicing their demands, including “remuneration imbalances must be addressed with immediate effect”. NUM regional secretary, Phillip Mankge, handed over the memorandum to Foskor’s COO, James Morotoba. Among others, NUM demands that their members are involved in the mine’s procurement processes to ensure fairness and ensure that BBBEE regulations are adhered to.

Workers furthermore “demand a totalitarian agenda of transformation to take place and the acceleration of transformation should happen at a fast pace for the workplace to be transformed,” the memo reads. The union gave the mine seven working days to respond. Morotoba acknowledged receipt of the memorandum and promised to revert to the union accordingly.

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He also stated that some of the matters raised in the memo could have been addressed a long time ago at an interview with Speak Out Phalaborwa and that for some issues to be properly addressed, the mine would need more time. “The mine has been experiencing challenges in the last eight to ten years, especially because of the cost of manure which we also produce, having decreased in the countries where we trade,” said Marabota.

“When the prices of our products are low, we find that the cost of some of our equipment, including machinery and steel, is high and that affects profits,” he said. He assured NUM members that the mine is continuously looking at ways to count costs, so as to ensure longevity and sustainability in the long run. NUM was supported by members of the Cosatu, the SACP, the ANC and the Ba-Phalaborwa Community Forum.