South African miner postpones job cuts until after lockdown

South African gold miner Village Main Reef has postponed potential job cuts until after the country’s lockdown period ends. The company had planned an evaluation of its operations which it said could lead to job losses, but agreed to postpone the process after meeting with South Africa’s mines minister.

The National Union of Mineworkers warned that 6,309 workers could lose their jobs as part of Village Main Reef’s retrenchment process.

The South African government recently extended its initial lockdown period until early May, and allowed mines to reopen at 50% capacity due to economic concerns of ongoing closures.