First Quantum Minerals says the strike action by miners at its Kansanshi mine in Solwezi is illegal.
Workers at the Kansanshi mine, Zambia’s largest copper mine which produced 231,000 tonnes of the red metal in 2010, downed tools on Tuesday demanding 100 percent pay rises and bringing production to a halt.
Company spokesperson Godfrey Msiska says there was no deadlock reached and as far as the management is concerned the strike is illegal.
He confirmed that the strike action by the workers has entered the second day today, with workers blocking the gate to the mine plant.
Mr Msiska has appealed to union officials to convince the workers to go back to work so that negotiations, which had been suspended because of the strike, could resume.
[Reuters]
The strikes are not healthy for our economy. But what can we do? The PF promised to deliver mountains and the people are just asking for what they were promised. If we are not careful this economy is going to register negative growth. Please someone put things in order so that mining can continue smoothly. At the moment we know that mining is very key to the Zambian economy. So lets do all we can as a country to sustain it.
and zctu is talking about the presidential immunity. come you guys pull up your socks. zctu and muz should go to this mine and have first hand information from both sides, workers’ and management’s. we all know that these mines, lumwana and kansanshi do mine diamonds and gold but do not declare anything to the govt. ask these workers on strike, they will shed more light on this one.
The workers deserve better conditions of service than what they get,all the profits made from lumwana and other mining companies are being externalized while leaving behind environmental degradation on living beings including communities and vegetation. Where is the the much sung about windfall tax? Dand crazy’s PF campaign song says”muchalo muno twimbamo na kopa, kwikala bwino bonse proper” And its true that copper is being produced in this country but the difference in remunerations between the so called expatriate miners and locals can easily provoke a strike action and the current form of labour laws does not facilitate for a legal action. PF &Shamenda should do something here? Workers should only be used as tools for profit making but should be paid according to their efforts.
DIAMOND AND GOLD BUT DO NOT DECLARE TO THE GOVERNMENT,HE PLEASE CONSTITUTE A TEAM TO FIND OUT THE TRUTH.WE NEED MORE MONEY TO DEVELOP ZAMBIA
Msiska should be very ashamed of himself.He is the person who has painted a picture like people get alot of money yet all people get are peanuts.What Pascal knows is that the least paid gets K5,000,000 yet their are alot of people get less than K1,200,000.Why should Zambia’s largest copper producers with less than 5000 employees have them on contracts while KCM with more than 10,000 employs have workers on permanent? What is so special about Kansanshi? They have 4 products unlike other mines.Copper cathodes,copper concentrates,gold and Acid.WHY SHOULD THEY PAY PEANUTS?
Evan Thole-correction last sentence should read “Workers should NOT only be used as tools for profit making but should be paid according to their efforts.
Reply
You see these employees are confrontational before they dialogue because they know there employer is on a weaker side because the PF promised to deliver mountains and the people are just asking for the basis on which they voted for PF.
Exploitative salaries for locals and unfair conditions of service are among the grievances of the local employees, apart from racist attitude of the mine management. Other unfair practices bordering on economic sabotage are other issues an awake government must deal with as a matter of urgency. The industrial action is a manifestation of an undercurrent of the rot that is going on at the mines. Government must establish what these mines are exploiting and therefore, what is not being declared. The government is sleeping on the job!!
@ Economic Sabotage you are spot on. I feel the first full cabinet Minister to go should be Shamenda and Sekeni. These guys hold very important ministries linked to help unemployment and improving working condition. Despite blowing to them where the mess is these guys still take these issue which children gloves. Its high time sata realised that he was given mandate to rule by the frastrated workers and there is a fast way to close this. being strict on permits and bridging the gap in salaries
Msiska is just a white man’s stooge a proper “house nigger”. He is his master’s voice. He should just shut up – the bootlicker.
Lazy zambians.
bafikala can you go back for work
ba FI COLOUR can you go back to work what are you childrens going to eat if you get kicked of of work ba MAMBALA
@8 economic sabotage. you are dead right. infact our presido should now show what he is made of. workers have suffered for too long at the hands of these thieves masquerading as investors. this is all the reason why we voted for change cos twachula sana mucalo cesu. namulwamo naimwe apapene.
Keep it up workers. Be reminded that the world has changed for worse. Investors are making huge profits at the expense of the poor worker. That is why countries like US and those in Europe are being controlled by Bank owners and powerful business men. Go on and fight for wat is yours. If they want let them go and close the mines. Others will come and buy.
what people don’t realise is that the mine feed us all, locals takes food home for their families-now they are going to starve out of their own stubborness. lets all go back to work atleast we all have a job and leave the rest to the unions and management. please guys zambia ia such a beautiful country why mess around and let all go down due to this. 8-|:-\”:-w:)>-
15 Worker,
Stop shilling for the mines.
Bravo!! It is about time, one mine different salaries, it is not right.
The Company produces Gold as a finished Product. Where in Zambia apart from Kansanshi do we have an ALL-WHITE-People residential area,civilised school,club to mension but afew.Do these id.iots want to bring arpathed here?Msiska is the only idi ot benefiting thats why he is blindly in support of these bunch of fools.No wonder in SA they cant be tolerated.
Miners, be blave and atleast get these nonsense sorted out
Guys, FQM should just pay the workers a 100% increment because it is well able to. I mean, FQM has so much money it is even upgrading the Solwezi airport to an international one! Msiska should just be serious and award our brothers the increment. I long to see a situation where these mining companies will just award salary increments without even waiting for negotiations. But the only probem is imitima ya management ibi sana.
WHERE ON EARTH CAN YOU HAVE TRAINEE EXPERTRIATE AT KANSASHI?
I PRAY TO GOD THAT FIRST QUANTUM’s EXPLOITATIVE GRIP ON THE ZAMBIAN MINING INDUSTRY IS COMING TO AN END.THEY USED THE MONET GENERATED IN ZAMBIA TO DIVERSIFY AND OPEN KEVISTA MINE ON FINLAND AND BUY RAVENSTHORPE MINE IN AUSTRALIA.
ZAMBIANS,WAKE UP.LET US CHASE FIRST QUANTUM AWAY.THERE ARE DOZENS OF INVESTORS WHO CAN COME AND BE MORE SYMPATHETIC TO THE ZAMBIAN WORKER