Current Strikes In South Africa Could Ruin Economy, Says Zuma

President Jacob Zuma warned on Thursday that the current labour strike in the mining sector ran the risk of running the South African economy into serious harm.

He made this comment in the National House of Traditional Leaders in Parliament as the country was bracing itself for yet another wave of strikes in the textile & clothing industry and the chrome mining sector.
“The tension in the industry will not help the economy…. We could impoverish our country. That’s why the leaders ought to engage workers, so that workers understand exactly…the consequences of their actions,” BDLive quoted Zuma as saying.
“If workers demand higher wages and that becomes a point of conflict, so sharp a conflict it could produce another Marikana, then there’s something wrong in our society.”
Conflict would not inspire economic development that leads to the creation of jobs.
If this labour strife in the mining sector continued, more people would be out of work in the country.
Meanwhile, about 10 000 Clothing & Textile workers reportedly went on a “warning” two-day labour action in Newcastle and QwaQwa which ended on Wednesday this week.
Earlier this week, other workers also went on a work stoppage at a chrome mine owned by Lanxess AG (LXS).
Last week, workers at the Lonmin mine of Marikana downed tools following their unhappiness over union representation on the mine.