Zambia’s KCM: Worker Riots Under Control, Output Restarted

12 novembre 2009

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

Rioting by workers at Zambia’s largest copper producer, Konkola Copper Mines, which erupted Wednesday has since been brought under control, allowing the company to restart output at its affected business units, a company spokesman told Dow Jones Newswires Thursday.

« Output has been resumed. We have agreed with the unions to put everything in order, » Rahul Kharkar said by telephone from Chingola on the Copper Belt.

KCM is majority-owned by London-listed Vedanta Resources PLC (VED.LN).

The strike, which started Tuesday over a wage dispute, turned rowdy Wednesday after miners rioted and destroyed company property. During the riots, sporadic incidences of stone throwing were noted within the mine area. Two dump trucks belonging to contractors were damaged by the rioting workers.

Sixteen houses and three cars belonging to expatriate families were also damaged, while two vehicles belonging to a Chinese contractor were set on fire, he added.

According to Kharkar, with the help of mine police and Zambia police, the riots were brought under control.

« The mob was dispersed by 1030 hours (Wednesday) and no further incidents have been reported. The situation in town has been peaceful from where no incidence of mob violence has been reported, » KCM said in a statement.

Kharkar further said operations at the new Nchanga smelter and Konkola and Nkana copper mines are now running smoothly.

KCM’s management held talks with the union leaders Wednesday, following the riots. The talks were terminated to allow the situation to calm down. The negotiations are expected to resume today. However, according to Kharkar, management wont hold any talks with the union if the riots resume.

Union officials couldn’t immediately comment.

-By Nicholas Bariyo, contributing to Dow Jones Newswires; +256 77 662 4615; bariyonic@yahoo.co.uk

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Pay strike hits Zambia’s Konkola copper mine

Wed Nov 11, 2009

* Workers are impatient over wage rise negotiations

* Police detain 30 rioting miners

(Recasts with KCM comments, police detentions)

LUSAKA, Nov 11 (Reuters) – A strike over wages by workers at Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), a unit of London-listed Vedanta Resources (VED.L), halted most units at the facility in Zambia on Wednesday, the company said.

KCM spokesman Rahur Kharkar said a shift of miners involved in the strike at the company’s Nchanga Integrated Business Unit had halted operations of the tailings leach plant, Nchanga underground mine and the concentrator.

Copperbelt province permanent secretary Villie Lombanya had earlier told Reuters that only the automated smelter was operating at the mine in Chingola, 380 km (236 miles) north of Lusaka.

« The employees were joined by non-mining fraternity outside the plant area … 16 houses and three cars belonging to expatriate families were damaged, » Kharkar said in a statement.

Kharkar said the workers had also burned two vehicles and demolished shelters for employees of a Chinese contractor at KCM, Zambia’s largest copper producer.

A government official said the workers, who were demanding higher pay, had also looted shops within the mine.

Kharkar said the KCM management and the Mine Workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) held emergency talks to find ways to end the strike.

MUZ general secretary Oswell Munyenyembe said police had detained 30 people they said were all miners after the riots.

« The union cannot support any form of violence and we are verifying the police report that all those arrested are miners, » Munyenyembe told Reuters by telephone from Johannesburg.

« If they (miners) don’t go back to work, management will not negotiate with us, » Munyenyembe said.

Output losses at KCM, which plans to produce 305,000 tonnes of copper in 2009, will only be known after the company assesses lost production hours, officials said.

In 2008, workers at KCM, which has several projects aimed at raising output, including the development of the Konkola Deep Mine Project (KDMP) which it hopes to bring on stream by 2010, carried out similar action during wage negotiations between the unions and management.

KCM, which operates the Konkola copper mine, the satellite Fitwaola mine and the Nampundwe pyrite mine, has also started reclaiming refractory ores at the Nchanga open pit to produce more copper. (Writing by Shapi Shacinda; editing by Anthony Barker)

KCM miners riot

http://www.postzambia.com

By Speedwell Mupuchi in Chingola

Wed 11 Nov. 2009

MINERS at Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) in Chingola yesterday rioted, disrupting operations at the giant copper mine.

However, police in riot gear have been deployed at the Nchanga Mine to keep the miners in check.
A union official, Chingola District commissioner Tobias Maliti and KCM corporate affairs manager Rahul Kharkar confirmed the disturbance at the mine yesterday that disrupted operations at the concentrator and Nchanga underground mine.

The irate miners picked stones but were restrained by security officers who were quickly deployed to control the situation and no property was damaged.

A miner found on site said the riot started at the concentrator where a miner mobilised his colleagues and together they proceeded to the shaft to wait for miners coming out of underground.

The source said miners who were changing shifts were ordered to join their colleagues.
He said the irate miners harassed three Indian employees on whose chests they stuck small placards demanding 100 per cent salary increment, and ordered them to raise their hands in sign of surrender and forced them to march towards their head office with the message.

The source said some of the miners gathered at the Tailings Leach Plant where they sat waiting for their colleagues to join them under the watchful eye of police officers.

A union official talked to said by press time, miners were still gathered at the shaft waiting for their colleagues who were underground so they could see them off.

« No workshop is operating at the moment, policemen are everywhere at the plant and the head office. The workers want 30 per cent salary increment. Actually there is only one item on the agenda; that is the 30 per cent salary increment, » said the official who did not want to be named.

« We didn’t want many items because we don’t want negotiations to be prolonged, the negotiations should have been completed in July but we had an extended collective agreement up to September 31, 2009. So from October to date there is no collective agreement in place, that’s why the workers went amok.”

The unions and KCM management were due to have a meeting over the disturbances.
Kharkar said some workers did not work because of the disruption.

He said state police had been deployed and they were able to keep the situation under control.
He said the Nchanga underground and concentrator were affected by the disruption.
Kharkar promised to issue a comprehensive statement about the disruption.

And Maliti said KCM management was ready for the negotiations.
He said he was informed the miners wanted results of the negotiations last Friday while negotiations were supposed to have started yesterday.

“I think it’s the impatience of the miners, give chance to management and the union to negotiate,” Maliti pleaded with the miners.

“Put your differences aside and allow negotiations; negotiations cannot go on under duress, there is power in dialogue, give dialogue a chance and return to work.”

And KCM security officers blocked Maliti from entering the mine premises when he arrived in a ZANIS vehicle accompanied by ZANIS reporters.

Informations

Konkola Copper Mines (PLC) est une compagnie minière basée dans la province du Copperbelt de la République de Zambie. Le siège opérationnel de la société est situé à Chingola.

~ par Alain Bertho sur 12 novembre 2009.

Publié dans émeutes, riots