Job losses batter South African mining industry

South Africa’s mining industry has shed 35,000 jobs in two years, having suffered a battering from labour unrest, rising costs and weak commodity prices.

The extent of the job losses – equivalent to one out of 14 workers – indicates how the labour unrest that has plagued the industry since the police shooting of 34 striking miners at Marikana in 2012 has accelerated restructuring in the sector.

Mining is one of the biggest private sector employers in South Africa and data from the Chamber of Mines provide the first detailed analysis of the extent of job losses since Marikana.

The majority of the losses between 2012 and last year were in gold and platinum, with those sectors shrinking by 23,100 and 10,800 respectively, according to the chamber. A further 1,600 jobs have been cut in iron ore mining between 2012 and last year.

Ngoako Ramatlhodi, South Africa’s mines minister, said this month that the government was “alarmed at the rate at which retrenchments have been taking place in the industry”.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2015