Employment

Great Noligwa Mine, situated near Orkney in the Vaal River area of AngloGold Ashanti’s Southern Africa Division, commenced production in 1968, making it one of the group’s older South African mines. (It was originally Number 8 Shaft of the historic Vaal Reefs Mining Company). For many years a major contributor to the group, the mine’s production has declined in recent years as has its grade. At peak production in 1998, Great Noligwa produced some 1,08 million ounces (around 20% of group production in that year). In 2008, this had declined to 330,000 ounces.

This declining production profile has been accompanied by a corresponding decrease in employee complement, from 7,100 employees (including contractors) in 2004, to 6,459 employees in 2007 and again down to 6,217 employees in 2008.

“In recognition of the potential hardship faced by employees in times of compulsory retrenchment, and the corresponding effect on morale, this reduction has been achieved largely through natural attrition, transfers to sister mines (mainly to Moab Khotsong and Kopanang Mines) and 66 employees opted for voluntary retrenchment during 2008 on their own request,” says Senior Human Resources Manager, Great Noligwa, Marius Steenkamp. Despite the declining complement, the preservation of jobs, where feasible, has been and remains a focus area for the mine. This focus applies equally to employees and contractors, as many local term contractors have become an integral part of the mine’s operations.

Early in 2008, Great Noligwa was faced with a potential problem when its largest contractor, Thaba Nchu Mining, filed for liquidation.

“About 700 people were allocated to Great Noligwa by Thaba Nchu Mining, of which some 550 worked underground,” says Steenkamp. The contractors were deployed principally in equipping (preparation for normal stopping and development operations) and secondary support (meshing and lacing of haulages and walkways).

“We were faced with two priorities,” says Steenkamp. “To meet our production objectives, we needed to re-allocate the tasks carried out by the former contractor as soon as possible. We also wanted to avoid job losses.”

Faced with these critical decisions, Great Noligwa management - in consultation with Johan Viljoen, Vice President: Southern Africa Division - decided to appoint 566 (about 80%) of the contractors on the mine to Great Noligwa.

The contractor’s liquidation was announced on 14 February 2008. By 10 March, these new appointees were formally in the mine’s employ.

The process involved interviewing all potential employees, as well as transferring all health- and safety-related records to AngloGold Ashanti’s own systems. Unions represented on the mine were consulted and involved throughout the process. Some degree of support was also offered to former contractor employees who were not offered positions, as Thaba Nchu Mining was not able to do so.

Steenkamp reports that improvements in efficiencies have been noted subsequent to the transfer in the specific tasks undertaken by the former contractors.

“This is obviously not the only cause as there are a number of factors involved, but we are confident that the feeling of being part of the team, as well as dedicated mine supervision, has enhanced commitment and motivation.” For example, in the case of meshing and lacing, an improvement from 16m² to 31m² per employee per month was recorded between the end of April and the end of December.

Apart from the recruitment-related aspects of the transfer, accommodation also had to be considered. “Of the 566 employees recruited from Thaba Nchu, 390 are deemed to be migrant workers – that is drawn from outside the immediate area of work,” says Steenkamp. There was no accommodation available in Great Noligwa’s residences, despite the reduction in overall complement from the previous year. This is attributable to the significant efforts put in place by the mine to improve the quality of accommodation in the residences and, in particular, providing an increased number of single occupant facilities.

“We approached another mining company, Pamodzi Gold, which operates several former Vaal Reefs shafts,” says Steenkamp. Pamodzi Gold was able to make sufficient accommodation at a reasonable cost, and Great Noligwa provides transport between the residences and the shaft.

This optimal use of available accommodation also proved helpful in a separate exercise, the absorption of the SV4 section, previously operated by Great Noligwa, into Moab Khotsong.

“This section was operated by Great Noligwa while Moab was still in the project phase. Given its location, its reversal to Moab makes business sense,” says Steenkamp. The move resulted in 1,100 Great Noligwa employees being transferred to Moab Khotsong. Some 470 of these had to be transferred to the Itereleng residence used by Moab Khotsong Mine.

“We took the opportunity of re-allocating accommodation to ensure greater proximity to the respective workplaces,” says Steenkamp. “This has reduced travelling time, and resulted in a more efficient use of the transport schedule and vehicles.”