2010-03-02

The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) held a meeting of national shop stewards from all Goldfields operations this morning after meeting with Goldfields management yesterday. The Union decided to suspend the strike action at Goldfields after Goldfields‘s agreement yesterday to accede to the demands of the NUM.

The company agreed to with effect from 03 March suspend the use of external service providers in conducting functional work capacity testing. Goldfields further agreed that it will no longer conduct functional work capacity testing for a period of three months, commencing retrospectively with effect from 27 January 2010 and that a working group will be established to find appropriate tests to assess the functional and physical ability of mineworkers.

The NUM has then decided based on the above commitments to suspend the crippling massive strike action which was supposed to begin on Sunday, the 07th of March at all Goldfields operations. The strike was going to see over 52 000 employees downing tools and thus bringing production to a halt.