A miner was killed at Mponeng mine near Carletonville as a result of a fall of ground after a seismic event on Thursday morning, Harmony Gold announced on Friday.
The company said all relevant authorities and stakeholders had been informed and an investigation, led by the department of mineral and petroleum resources, had begun.
“The safety and wellbeing of our employees is, and will always be, our number one priority. This tragic loss of life is devastating,” Harmony CEO Beyers Nel said.
The company extended condolences to the miner's family and friends.
“We are committed to zero harm and yet recent events remind us that we must do more with urgency, with unity and with unwavering resolve,” Nel said.
The company said it had held a Visible Felt Leadership day on Wednesday, to reinforce the emphasis on safety and reiterate to Harmony staff that they have the right to withdraw from any area where they feel unsafe.
The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) expressed concern about the loss of life at Mponeng and demanded a technical audit of compliance with health and safety regulations at its operations.
“We are not even in the third month of the year and already Harmony has killed six breadwinners,” Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa said.
The union said on February 4, three miners, all preparing the face for drilling at Harmony Joel, had succumbed to a fall of ground that was supposedly deemed safe. On the same day, two miners were killed in an unexplained blast while drilling at Harmony Doornkop.
Mathunjwa said despite reporting R8.2bn in profits for the past financial year, the company had failed to invest adequately in safety measures that could prevent these deaths.
“Amcu has consistently campaigned for amendments to the Mine Health and Safety Act to ensure that mining executives are held criminally accountable for killing mineworkers.
“Year after year, we see corporate executives amassing massive bonuses while workers die due to avoidable accidents. This cannot continue,” Mathenjwa said.
TimesLIVE
Miner killed at Harmony's Mponeng mine
Image: BUSINESSLIVE/Robert Tshabalala
A miner was killed at Mponeng mine near Carletonville as a result of a fall of ground after a seismic event on Thursday morning, Harmony Gold announced on Friday.
The company said all relevant authorities and stakeholders had been informed and an investigation, led by the department of mineral and petroleum resources, had begun.
“The safety and wellbeing of our employees is, and will always be, our number one priority. This tragic loss of life is devastating,” Harmony CEO Beyers Nel said.
The company extended condolences to the miner's family and friends.
“We are committed to zero harm and yet recent events remind us that we must do more with urgency, with unity and with unwavering resolve,” Nel said.
The company said it had held a Visible Felt Leadership day on Wednesday, to reinforce the emphasis on safety and reiterate to Harmony staff that they have the right to withdraw from any area where they feel unsafe.
The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) expressed concern about the loss of life at Mponeng and demanded a technical audit of compliance with health and safety regulations at its operations.
“We are not even in the third month of the year and already Harmony has killed six breadwinners,” Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa said.
The union said on February 4, three miners, all preparing the face for drilling at Harmony Joel, had succumbed to a fall of ground that was supposedly deemed safe. On the same day, two miners were killed in an unexplained blast while drilling at Harmony Doornkop.
Mathunjwa said despite reporting R8.2bn in profits for the past financial year, the company had failed to invest adequately in safety measures that could prevent these deaths.
“Amcu has consistently campaigned for amendments to the Mine Health and Safety Act to ensure that mining executives are held criminally accountable for killing mineworkers.
“Year after year, we see corporate executives amassing massive bonuses while workers die due to avoidable accidents. This cannot continue,” Mathenjwa said.
TimesLIVE
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