Only 14% of TB/silicosis claims paid to date are for deceased mineworkers

The Tshiamiso Trust has faced significant delays in processing thousands of eligible silicosis and TB claims to determine their eligibility for compensation.  

The trust said these delays could occur for various reasons, including restrictions on the sources and content of the medical information which may be used to certify a claim and gaps in the documentation presented to the trust for certification.  

The trust was established to implement the settlement agreement reached between six mining companies and claimant attorneys in the historic silicosis and TB class action. The companies are African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American South Africa, AngloGold Ashanti, Harmony Gold, Sibanye-Stillwater and Gold Fields. 

The trust is responsible for compensating all eligible and former mineworkers in Southern Africa with permanent impairment due to silicosis or work-related TB, or their dependents where the mineworker has died.  

The trust released its annual report for the financial year ending February 29 and provided key updates on its operations, successes and challenges at its AGM on Friday. 

Trust chairperson Dr May Hermanus said the trust had been engaged in extensive discussions and legal processes to clarify several complex issues in varying interpretations of key provisions in the trust deed with the parties involved.

She said these protracted proceedings consumed significant resources and affected the trust’s ability to process claims, thus preventing many claims from advancing to the payment stage. 

Though substantial progress had been made through the six amendments to the trust deed to date, some interpretation issues were yet to be settled, resulting in significant delays in finalising many claims.  

While these delays affected some categories of living ex-mineworkers, the dependents of deceased mineworkers were affected most, with only 14% (2,613) of the close to 19,000 claims paid to date being for deceased mineworkers.

By August 29 the trust had paid R1.8bn for 18,973 claims. 

One of the complex legal issues the trust needs to resolve is the definition of an official death certificate, whether an “official death certificate” is limited to the death certificate issued by the department of home affairs or equivalent in other countries as the sole source document to determine the primary cause of death. 

Another question concerns the eligibility of previous claims, whether all qualifying mineworkers who developed permanent lung impairment from work-related TB should be included regardless of when they were examined and diagnosed by an accredited practitioner. 

The trust said despite the challenges it remained committed to resolving these matters as swiftly as possible. The trust and the settling parties were engaged in further discussions with the goal of finding a resolution in the next few weeks. 

“As trustees we understand these delays have caused considerable hardship and frustration for many claimants,” Hermanus said. 

“Our focus remains on providing fair and equitable compensation to those affected within the provisions of the trust deed.”

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