Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian
amculatest news & developments
Riding into the sunset: ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe said the alliance has been central to the country’s liberation struggle and all partners were custodians of a revolutionary project in which South Africans had invested hope and expectation. Mantashe has indicated he is not available or nomination anymore. Photo: ANC
AMCU

Mantashe: SACP will pay a heavy price at elections

The ANC chairperson also urged the party not to elect a strongman president at its 2027 conference

  • Lunga Mzangwe
8 min read
ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe.
AMCU

Exclusive: Ramaphosa does not owe Marikana a visit over 2012 massacre, Mantashe says

The ANC chairperson dismissed as insignificant, the party’s loss last September of a ward which includes Marikana

  • Lunga Mzangwe
4 min read
Essential: Although trade unions no longer occupy the same status they did during apartheid, they remain vital for vulnerable workers. Photo: Delwyn Verasamy
AMCU

Are unions still relevant? Yes, they gave us our dignity, say workers

Labour relations reached a crossroads with the Marikana Massacre, raising questions about the relevance and power of unions post-apartheid

  • Nkateko Joseph Mabasa
6 min read
After a two-year halt of gatherings to mark the anniversary of the 16 August 2012 shooting due to the Covid-19 pandemic, those who survived the shooting as well as mine union officials and politicians gathered for the 10th commemoration in North West province. (Paul Botes/M&G)
10 YEARS

‘Justice for Marikana will only be served if we see Ramaphosa behind bars’ – Amcu president

The mineworker union’s Joseph Mathunjwa spoke at the ten-year anniversary of the massacre

  • Sonri Naidoo
3 min read
Retired judge Ian Farlam says a personal apology from Cyril Ramaphosa would help families of the dead to heal.
AMCU

Marikana: There should have been disciplinary proceeding, says Ian Farlam

The chair of the commission of inquiry says a personal apology from Cyril Ramaphosa would help families of the dead to heal

  • Sonri Naidoo
3 min read
Mineworkers who have been newly recruited to the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa attend a meeting at Impala Platinum’s shaft 9 in Rustenburg, North West. (Magnificent Mndebele)
AMCU

The deadly cost of union membership in North West

The platinum belt is roiling with tension once more after the assassination of Numsa organiser Malibongwe Mdazo.

  • Magnificent Mndebele
7 min read
The pandemic is testing the resilience of most economies, especially those of developing countries. (Madelene Cronjé)
AMCU

‘More needed’ for miners to work again

Amcu and experts agree that mineworkers and their communities face a unique risk without a detailed response to Covid-19 from the sector

  • Sarah Smit
4 min read
Mantashe, the court found, was “duty-bound” to take into account the considerations of the ICMA. “As a matter of fact, he did not do so. This, in and by itself, renders the impugned decision reviewable.”
AMCU

Department warns mines to comply

Estimates hint that the scaling down of work in response to Covid-19 will result in a sharp drop in production in April and by 4.5% for the year

  • Thando Maeko
4 min read
Fighting for their rights: Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa addressing mineworkers about the recent retrenchments at Sibanye. (Paul Botes/M&G)
AMCU

Miners speak out against Sibanye

Not a year into buying Lonmin, Sibanye is accused of mistreating the mineworkers who were injured eight years ago during the Marikana massacre. But the platinum giant says it is…

  • Athandiwe Saba
5 min read
On Thursday, during an address of Amcu delegates, Mathunjwa suggested his re-election was a foregone conclusion. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
AMCU

Mathunjwa retains Amcu presidency

All positions up for nominations at the union’s national elective congress were uncontested

  • Sarah Smit
2 min read
During his address of thousands of Amcu delegates on Thursday, Mathunjwa also rebuffed criticism that he has used the union to enrich himself. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
AMCU

Amcu congress is not about contestation — Mathunjwa

All five positions up for nominations are uncontested, pending nominations from the floor

  • Sarah Smit
2 min read
Zwelinzima Vavi. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
AMCU

Vavi asks Amcu for unity

The Saftu general secretary addressed thousands of delegates at Amcu’s national elective congress on Thursday

  • Sarah Smit
2 min read
In April, it emerged that the Amcu was in danger of losing its status as a trade u?nion. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
AMCU

Amcu in the clear as labour registrar decides not to strip it of union status

Labour registrar Lehohonolo Molefe has decided not to continue with the deregistration of the trade union

  • Sarah Smit
2 min read
Joseph Mathunjwa has vowed to continue lead the union’s 60 000 members in the platinum sector to the “kingdom of heaven” at their respective mines. (Oupa Nkosi/M&G)
AMCU

Kingdom of heaven’ is 47% increase for platinum miners

Amcu mulls widespread industrial action

  • Thando Maeko
3 min read
More than nine people have reportedly died as a result of violence during the strike and there is reason to believe that this number may be higher. (Oupa Nkosi/M&G)
AMCU

Deadly cost of Sibanye-Stillwater gold miners’ strike

The lengthy strike finally ended with Amcu agreeing to the same wage offer other mining unions accepted in October

  • Lloyd Gedye
7 min read
Amcu head Joseph Mathunjwa insists his union’s affairs are in order and that the possible deregistration of the union is “politically motivated.” (Oupa Nkosi/M&G)
AMCU

Amcu to meet labour registrar over cancellation threat

Amcu head says his union is under attack by capital and other "yellow unions"

  • Natasha Marrian
3 min read
Joseph Mathunjwa, president of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union. (Reuters)
AMCU

Amcu failed to hold congress since 2013: labour registrar

Labour registrar Lehlohonolo Molefe on Thursday said Amcu’s failure to hold a congress was in contravention of the unions own constitution

  • Natasha Marrian
3 min read
Amcu — which rose to prominence during the labour unrest which led to the Marikana massacre in 2012 — began as a breakaway from the ANC-aligned National Union of Mineworkers. (Oupa Nkosi/M&G)
AMCU

Amcu, govt showdown looms amidst threat to deregister union

Amcu — which rose to prominence during the labour unrest which led to the Marikana massacre in 2012 — began as a breakaway from the ANC-aligned NUM

  • Natasha Marrian
3 min read
Ramaphosa is not Thatcher incarnate. Nor will he attempt to bring her back to life. The last thing this country needs is the divisive, confrontational and uncompromising ideological dogma of a quasi-Thatcherism, writes the author. (John McCann)
AMCU

Ramaphosa and the Thatcherite moment of truth

Cyril Ramaphosa is no Margaret Thatcher but he is having to determine the same issue: Who runs the country?

  • Richard Calland
7 min read
Just before 9pm, the department confirmed on its official Twitter account that around 1 000 employees had been safely brought to surface. (Gallo)
AMCU

Sibanye-Stillwater warns of possible job cuts

The gold producer is locked in an ongoing wage dispute with AMCU and is facing ongoing losses at its gold operations

  • Tshegofatso Mathe
3 min read