October 07, 2008

BHPB workers face retrenchment at RBCT smelter

The National Union of Metalworkers of SA said that about 800 workers face retrenchment at BHP Billiton's Bayside aluminum smelter in Richards Bay. The retrenchments followed Eskom demand that big electricity consumers reduce their power consumption by 10%.

Mr Mziwakhe Hlangani a spokesperson said that company management confirmed that it would be issuing final notices to the affected workers at the weekend and the retrenchments would be effected on April 1st 2008.

Mr Hlangani said that the drastic decision to lay off metalworkers took place at a time when Numsa had made earnest appeals to the ANC and the minerals and energy parliamentary committee to intervene as planned retrenchments were connected to the countrywide power crisis. Rather than ensuring that other feasible alternatives were considered such as buying big industrial power generators, the largest resource company once intimated that it planned to relocate its smelters to the Democratic Republic of Congo, the union charged.

Numsa said it had always been aware that the closure of smelters in the town would affect more than 20 000 families. And, for that reason the union called on government and other stakeholders to urgently adopt a social plan, because the area would be negatively affected.