Over 9 000 jobs to be cut in SA

The first two months of the new year have seen a number of South African companies give notice to retrench workers – a move which will result in more than 9 000 people losing their jobs.

Below are some of the companies who are looking to downsize their workforce:

Telkom

• Telkom informed trade unions and staff that it could cut up to 3 000 of its more than 15 000 employees
• The company is struggling with declining performance in the face of competition
• The Federation of Unions of South Africa (FEDUSA) has highlighted that overall job cuts at Telkom in 2020 could be around 6 000 jobs

Samancor 

• Mining company Samancor Chrome said it could cut close to 2 500 jobs in response to weak chrome prices and power supply problems
• The job cuts would apply to its Eastern and Western Chrome mines
• It cited Eskom’s power supply problems and increased electricity tariffs as reasons for the jobs cut

Dion Wired/Massmart 

• Massmart plans to shutter the 23-store Dion-Wired chain of hi-tech appliance shops and 11 Masscash wholesale outlets
• This will affect 1 440 employees of 12 000
• Massmart is suffering from an earnings slump due to declining consumer traffic in malls and low consumer confidence, which has affected sales of high price-ticket electronic items

Sibanye-Stillwater

• The mine has reportedly retrenched 1 142 employees, well below the initial anticipated retrenchment figure of 5 270 jobs
• The mining company employs 88 000 people across South Africa
• The retrenchments follow the Section 189 restructuring at its Marikana operation, which has suffered losses since the shooting in 2012

Glencore

• Glencore issued section 189 notices to 665 employees
• The retrenchments centre around the mine’s Rustenburg Smelter
• The group has cited the high cost of electricity and an increase in the carbon tax and logistics costs as reasons for downsizing

Aspen

• Aspen Pharmacare said it plans to cut up to 219 jobs at its Port Elizabeth and East London plants
• The drugmaker is disposing of non-core assets to manage its debt burden as it seeks to remain globally competitive