adminJOHANNESBURG. — Unions for coal miners in South Africa declared a dispute after wage talks with employers stalled, government arbitrators said on Wednesday in the midst of similar strife in the gold sector. The powerful National Union of Mineworkers and smaller groupings referred the matter, according to the state’s Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.
Industry negotiators offered a 7 percent pay and living allowance hike, according to union Solidarity.
Mass stoppages in the mining sector have crippled production in Africa’s largest economy since last year.
Major strikes loom again this year as gold miners and unions struggle to reach an agreement.
Mining firms, meanwhile, struggle to balance in- creasing salary demands with lower profits. —AFP.
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