Assmang Agrees to 10% Wage Increase at Beeshoek & Khumani Mines

Trade union Solidarity said on Monday 26 July 2010 that it had negotiated a 10% wage increase for its members at Assmang Ltd’s two iron ore mines in South Africa’s Northern Cape region. The Johannesburg based company – which is equally owned by African Rainbow Minerals Ltd and Assore Ltd – will also give employees at its Khumani and Beeshoek mines an additional two days leave a year, an increase in their shift allowance and a jump in maternity benefits, the union said. Demand for iron ore remains positive despite a slowdown in the manufacturing sector, Solidarity spokesman Jaco Kleynhans said. “Skills are the most valuable asset in which a company can invest. The wage agreement will pave the way for wage negotiations that will be held in this area later in the year,” he said.  Dow Jones