Protesters from Marikana in Rustenburg gathered outside the offices of Samancor Chrome in Joburg, demanding jobs at home.
More than 100 people from Marikana in Rustenburg protested outside Samancor Chrome’s Sandton headquarters on Wednesday demanding jobs and training.
The protest was organised by the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) under the banner of the Jobs Bloodbath Campaign.
“The issue of unemployment is a crisis in the country as a whole,” said Mametlwe Sebei, campaign coordinator and president of the General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA). Sebei said mining communities in Rustenburg are among the most vulnerable, with high levels of poverty and hunger.
Protesters said the company had failed to provide jobs and training to people from the area.
Tshepo Molaole from the Marikana Community Unemployment Forum said a memorandum handed over to the company’s Marikana branch earlier this year raising urgent demands and grievances had been met with silence.
“Samancor is a company that is mining in our community, but it has failed to provide us with services. Jobs are being given to people who are not from our community and are sometimes sold to people with money,” said Molaole.
The Marikana Community Unemployment Forum complained of a lack of local empowerment and procurement opportunities, high levels of unemployment in the area, a lack of transparency around Social and Labour Plans, lack of training for local residents, and the concentration of opportunities in the hands of a connected few.
The protesters demanded that the company provide 5,000 jobs for community members. They asked for the provision of 1,000 skills training opportunities. Other demands included changes to employment age restrictions; assessment of criminal records to include rehabilitation and reintegration before exclusion; and the setting of the minimum education requirement for general workers at Grade 5. Protesters also asked for women’s empowerment and representation.
“We believe that these measures will not only reduce unemployment but also restore dignity, stability, and growth in our communities,” the memorandum read. The company was given 7 days to respond.
“The company employs people coming from far-away provinces. I submitted a CV in 2016 and have been waiting since,” said Marikana resident Sihle Caba.
Samancor Chrome representatives Jomo Kgadi and Robert Malunda received and signed the memorandum. The company was given seven days to respond.
The company’s communications department had not responded to requests for comment from GroundUp by the time of publication.
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