Should companies bear the burden of protecting unprofitable jobs, or should the government bear the burden of protecting the people? This question is now palpable in the platinum sector. It's a hard question because it's unlikely that jobs in the sector will return. Ultimately, the government should shoulder the burden on re-skilling because training is demand-driven, not supply-driven.
As I drive through Rusteburg's Waterval East neighbourhood, there's an eerie feeling. This area was once the heart of the platinum boom - buildings of flats and blocks of houses were rapidly erected to meet the growing demand for labour. Today, those houses and flats largely lie empty and local unemployment has skyrocketed.
It's a challenging time for South Africa's platinum sector, and a series of difficult announcements have exacerbated an already-low morale: 36,000 mining jobs were lost in Q2 of 2019 alone; Minerals Council SA recently estimated that 90,000 of 168,000 jobs - or 54% of the platinum's sector's employment is at risk; and Sibanye-Stillwater announced plans to cut 5,270 jobs from the mines it acquired from Lonmin.
In light of the negative news and the catastrophic impact retrenchments can have on livelihoods, eyes turned towards the state. Mineral Resources and...
