Pretoria - The threat of job losses in the mining and steel sectors is of serious concern to government, President Jacob Zuma said on Tuesday.
The job losses would have a negative impact on many families, communities and the economy, said the President.
Giving the nation an update since the State of the Nation Address (SONA) in February, the President said mining remained a critical component of the South African economy.
“We want it to remain the backbone of the South African economy,” he said.
The President’s comments follows recent announcements by several mining companies of their intention to retrench workers.
To address this, the Minister of Mineral Resources Ngoako Ramatlhodi convened a retreat of tripartite stakeholders in the mining sector recently.
Stakeholders identified a number of areas to save jobs and to find alternatives to job losses. A task team was established and mandated to develop detailed proposals.
This task team is due to report back to principals this week, said the President.
The Presidential Business Working Group last Friday mandated government and the Chamber of mines to seek an amicable solution outside of the courts, to the notion of “once empowered, always empowered” in the Mining Charter.
Meanwhile, the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Amendment Bill was referred back to Parliament to address, among other things, consultation at the National Council of Provinces, which was considered to have not been adequate.
The President further added the first results delivery methodology Operation Phakisa were successfully launched in the health and ocean economy sectors last year.
President Zuma will launch a Mining Phakisa before the end of the year, which will look at minerals beneficiation.
“The mining sector is facing difficulties as well ... We don’t want workers to lose jobs,” said the President. - SAnews.gov.za
