Editor
As Workers Day dawned on us, there are mixed reactions depending on the side of the spectrum a person sits on.
As guidance, I would direct attention to Muslims of their responsibility towards workers: –
Quranic injunctions and Prophetic injunctions
“Serve Allah, and make not any partners with Him in His divinity.
Do good to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those in need, neighbours who are near, neighbours who are strangers, the companion by your side, the way-farer (you meet) and those whom your right hands possess (your workers): for Allah loves not the arrogant, the vainglorious. (Nor) those who are stingy, or enjoin stinginess on others, or hide the bounties which Allah has bestowed on them; for We have prepared, for those who are ungrateful, a humiliating punishment.” (An-Nisaa’ 4:36-37)
“Give just measure and weight, nor withhold from the people the things that are their due; and do no mischief on the earth after it has been set in order: that will be best for you, if you have Faith.” (Al-A`raf 7: 85)
“Woe to those that deal in fraud. Those who, when they have to receive by measure from men, exact full measure.
But when they have to give by measure or weight to men, give less than due.
Do they not think that they will be called to account? On a Mighty Day. A Day when (all) mankind will stand before the Lord of the Worlds.” (Al-Mutaffifin 83:1-6)
“Give the worker his wages before his sweat dries.” (Ibn Maajah 2443)
Employees have a duty to abide by their contractual relationships and fulfill the tasks required from them by their employer, as Allah commands us in the Qur’an:
“O you who have believed, fulfill [all] contracts…” (Al-M?’idah: 1)
Employees must always be honest with their employers, and maintain the trust afforded to them. A’ishah (r.a) reported the Prophet (saw) as saying:
“Verily, Allah loves that when anyone of you does something he does it perfectly.” (Bayhaqi)
Regarding trampling upon one’s rights, the Prophet (saw) said: “He upon whom his brother has a right, be it of the nature of money or honour, let him compensate for it before he is made to compensate for it on a day when there will be neither dinar nor dirham to deal with…” (Bukhari).
As such, it is desirable to avoid infringing upon others’ rights. If we have violated a person’s rights, the best we can do is to seek their pardon and rectify our mistakes as soon as possible.
“(They are) Your brethren whom Allâh has placed in your custody. Let him who has been made custodian of his brother by Allâh feed him from what he himself eats, clothe him out of what he clothes himself, and impose not on him work that will overcome him…” (Bukhârî and Muslim).?
Whilst we do not condone lawlessness, looting, disproportionate conduct from strikers and boycotters, disruptive and violent behaviour, we can align ourselves to the current mine workers strikes for many reasons.
Historically, foreign companies have shown that they have a tendency to loot and plunder from countries with mineral wealth and a very good example is the fuel drawn from them.
These countries remain impoverished, the environment is left in tatters and those who earn are the companies’ owners and shareholders and unscrupulous government officials. Only profit is the integral issue without any social content attaching to it and I am concerned that this principal has now been adopted by local companies, although many claim to be ‘social partners in the upliftment of the poor’. This is a fallacy!
Miners have for too long endured working long hours in ‘pits’ tirelessly striking against rocks, being exposed to dust and noise in isolation, to emerge from these ‘dungeons”.
Many barely see sunlight unless they work on shift and have to stay long distances away from their children and families.
It is unfair for them to eke out an existence on the pittance paid to them in comparison to the shareholders that simply invest money and infrastructure but require the toil of workers to puff up their profits, which in any event, leaves this country.
The supposed contribution made to people in this country is negligible and resources of our country need to be ploughed back here if we are to maintain equity and empowerment (minus rogue officials).
It seems to me that sympathy for workers appears to dissipate in the quagmire of violent reactions, profit sharing and other peripheral issues but the reality remains- the workers need a better deal in these mines and we hope that some positive outcomes surface from these strikes or else these workers days simply become another holiday with no sound sustainable consequences?

Rashid Patel