Wednesday, 22 May 2013 09:31

Ann Crotty says it’s full marks to the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) for taking its role as a responsible investor seriously and telling the emperors on all those remuneration committees that they are wearing no clothes. The PIC, which manages R1 trillion on behalf of the Government Employees’ Pension Fund, has just updated its record of voting at annual general meetings. The update reveals that more than 50% of the companies that held annual general meetings in the six months to the end of March did not provide sufficient information for the PIC, as a shareholder, to understand why executives were being paid what they were being paid. Crotty says the biggest challenge for remuneration committees these past few years has been how to pay their executives more money while having to report weaker profits.

• Read this article at Business Report
• Read too, ‘IoDSA issues paper on remuneration’, on page 17 of Wednesday’s Business Report

Wednesday, 22 May 2013 08:56

David McKay reports that Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) and unions are to resume Section 189 restructuring talks relating to the platinum firm's Rustenburg shafts on Friday, 24 May. Amplats said the process, which will fall under the auspices of the CCMA, may save yet more jobs than first envisaged in its revised restructuring announced on 10 May. "We have agreed on proposals that we intend to thrash out further at the CCMA. It may have the result of saving more jobs," said Mpumi Sithole, a spokesperson for the company. In its revised restructuring, Amplats said it would cut the number of planned retrenchments to 6,000 from 14,000.

• Read more at Miningmx

Wednesday, 22 May 2013 08:27

Sowetan reports that mixed information is trickling out in relation to the number of people that BHP Billiton plans to retrench in SA. While the United Association of SA (Uasa) said so-called ‘Section 189” notices of possible retrenchments had been sent to 2,000 workers, BHP Billiton Energy Coal SA (Becsa) said it planned “rationalising approximately 100 staff” at its head office It expects to complete the consultation process by the end of June. A highly-placed sources in the company told Sowetan that it aimed to part ways with 2,800 workers. Uasa spokesman Franz Stehring confirmed that consultations were taking place, but commented that, once over, the number of job losses “is going to be far less than 2,000.” Solidarity was not aware of the retrenchments, while the NUM said it had only heard of plans to lay off 30 administrative staff.

• Read this report on page 22 of Wednesday’s Sowetan

Wednesday, 22 May 2013 07:20

Cosatu yesterday issued a statement indicating it would brief the media on Wednesday about final preparations for its continuing protest against the e-tolls system. Last week Cosatu vowed it would shut down Gauteng's highways later this month to protest against e-tolling and labour brokers. This was after discussions with both the Gauteng and national governments in an attempt to persuade them to take action on these points did not yield any positive outcomes, according to the federation’s Gauteng secretary Dumisani Dakile. Two protests have been planned. The first march on 24 May in Johannesburg would affect the M1, N1, N12, and M2. The second would be held in Ekurhuleni on 31 May, affecting the N3, N12, and R21. Cosatu has also signalled its intention to stage various protest actions in June, including a possible night vigil at the SA National Roads Agency’s office.

• A short press statement is at SA Labour News

Wednesday, 22 May 2013 06:45

Allan Seccombe reports that the Chamber of Mines has described the National Union of Mineworkers’ (NUM’s) demands for this year’s wage talks as "incredibly steep", and an analyst has warned that the NUM was continuing down the road of "labour suicide", as fuller details of the demands emerged. Apart from the demand for a 60% increase for entry-level wages, the NUM also wants the monthly housing allowance raised to R8,000 from R1,800, a 344% increase, and the living-out allowance for workers opting not to stay in mine accommodation bumped up to R3,000 a month from R1,650. Analysts say the NUM is desperate to recapture the high ground after being marginalised by its rival, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), on platinum mines and three key gold mines in 2012. Solidarity, which represents a much narrower band of workers, has demanded a 10% wage hike.

• Read more at BDLive