Marikana massacre participant Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union
Background
NUM–Amcu rivalry
The Marikana strike occurred against a backdrop of antagonism between the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and its emerging rival, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU). The NUM was the largest affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), which in turn was allied with South Africa's ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC), and has contributed many of the ANC's senior leaders. According to the Guardian, the NUM's popularity had begun to decline under general secretary Frans Baleni, partly because of the NUM's perceived closeness to government and to management, which in some cases led members to believe that the union accepted unfair wage settlements that tied workers into years of insufficient wage increases. Amcu, on the other hand, was founded by Joseph Mathunjwa after he fell out with the NUM in 1998. In the months and years ahead of the Marikana strike, Amcu had begun to compete with the NUM for members and bargaining rights, especially in South Africa's platinum mines – the NUM's platinum sector had, during Baleni's tenure, become increasingly alienated from the NUM mainstream. In January and February 2012, a six-week strike at the Impala Platinum mine in Rustenberg, North West Province turned acrimonious when the NUM accused Amcu of fuelling the strike to gain members; four people died in the ensuing violence.The strike which occasioned the massacre was held at the Marikana mine, a platinum mine at Marikana, Rustenberg, not far from the Impala mine where the earlier violence occurred. The mine was operated by Lonmin, the world's third-largest platinum producer. NUM's dominance in Lonmin mines had faltered in the preceding years: its membership had declined from 66 per cent of Lonmin workers to 49 per cent, and it had therefore lost its exclusive organising rights in the mines. Simultaneously, Amcu's support had shot up to roughly 20 per cent of Lonmin workers.Worker grievances
The strike at Marikana was driven by rock drill operators, who of all mineworkers typically work in some of the most dangerous conditions underground. Lonmin employed about 4,100 such operators. The rock drillers sought a three-fold wage increase, from R4,000 a month to R12,500 a month, notwithstanding the fact that the prevailing collective wage agreement was not due to expire until 2013. At least some of the strikers were inspired by the wage increases that had been obtained by rock drillers at the Impala mine strike earlier that year (from R4,000 to R9,500). Some were reportedly encouraged by the fact that, in July 2012, Lonmin had agreed to grant a housing allowance increase to miners following an unprotected strike, suggesting that the mine was willing to negotiate outside of the collective wage agreement. However, it was also reported that Amcu had promised the Marikana strikers that the R12,500 wage was attainable – and thus, in the Guardian's phrase, had "dangled a fat piece of fruit in front of the workers' eyes". Amcu president Mathunjwa confirmed that the strike was a response to poor pay: "As long as bosses and senior management are getting fat cheques, that's good for them. And these workers are subjected to poverty for life." However, on 17 August – after the massacre – he denied that Amcu had promised workers that it could negotiate a R12,500 wage.In the aftermath of the strike and massacre, commentators turned their attention to broader conditions in the mining industry which could have contributed to the workers' grievances and to the volatile environment during the strike. Al Jazeera said that the strike took place amid "seething tensions" in the mine, as a result of "dire living conditions, union rivalry, and company disinterest". The Bench Marks Foundation argued that a key trigger of the violence had been the exploitation of the mineworkers: "The benefits of mining are not reaching the workers or the surrounding communities. Lack of employment opportunities for local youth, squalid living conditions, unemployment and growing inequalities contribute to this mess." Rob Davies, South Africa's Minister of Trade and Industry, described the conditions in the mines as "appalling" and said that mine owners who "make millions" had questions to answer about how they treat their workers. The International Labour Organisation agreed, saying that workers in mines such as Marikana were frequently "exposed to a variety of safety hazards: falling rocks, exposure to dust, intensive noise, fumes and high temperatures, among others".