Husab workers complain about treatment
The uranium-mining company has denied claims of unfair and discriminatory practices made by Namibian workers.
CATHERINE SASMAN
Swakop Uranium (SU), the Namibian-registered company that owns the Husab Mine in the Erongo Region, has denied claims that its Namibian workforce is being treated differently than their Chinese counterparts.
Some Namibian employees at the company have alleged that the company’s policies and procedures are not applied equally to all employees, claiming that there is “a lot of injustice and inconsistency”.
The Namibian employees, preferring anonymity, claimed that there is no transparency in the company, and that Chinese nationals have their own meetings on the progress at the company while Namibians are left in the dark.
“Double standards exist between Chinese and Namibian employees. Chinese employees are allowed to sleep on duty while it is a serious offence for Namibians to do so,” the sources claimed.
They also claimed there are no Namibian understudies being trained or guided by Chinese expatriates.
“Instead, it is usually the other way round where Namibians have to train the Chinese expatriates,” one charged, saying Chinese employees’ qualifications are often dodgy.
They said the salaries are inconsistent and that their housing allowances are not competitive with other mining companies.
Husab staff in November last year petitioned the management over similar complaints, but the vice-president of human resources at SU, Percy McCullum, shrugged of the claims as hogwash.
He said the company embraces a multi-cultural environment as one of its core values.
“The successful interaction and integration of the various cultures has nurtured a unique culture in which employees from both countries learn from each other in the work environment and socially with great agility to breed a high-performance culture of diligence, discipline and dedication,” McCullum said.
SU is co-owned by majority shareholder China General Nuclear (CGN), the China-Africa Development Fund (CAD Fund) and Epangelo Mining.
STAFF GROWTH
The construction of the mine started in 2012 and when it started with its operations in 2014, it had 30 permanently employed workers.
Over a period of four years the staff complement grew to 1 619 and about 500 contractor employees that are working at the Husab site.
McCullum said the company is the biggest single employer in the mining industry in Namibia and that it is in fact supporting the national agenda of the Namibian government to alleviate poverty and unemployment.
He said roughly half of the employees are from the youth and unemployed categories. Many of the staff, he said, were recruited from other mining houses and other industries. He said the company usually receives hundreds of applications for vacant positions that are advertised.
McCullum contended that the company does have a competitive salary structure and an official grading system.
“The salaries are benchmarked annually against major companies within the various industries. SU remunerates employees based on levels of experience and other factors impacting on the role. Job descriptions are in place for each role, outlining employees’ duties and responsibilities,” he insisted.
He said CGN, as the majority shareholder, does maintain “reasonable control measures” to guarantee the safety of the operations and return on its investment.
CGN has seconded 35 Chinese employees to SU. This constitutes about 1.8% of all SU employees.
McCullum said these employees are fully integrated into the company’s operations, are highly educated and trained in management and operational systems and provide strategic, financial and technical direction alongside the local management.
TRAINING
McCullum said the company had put in place a comprehensive training and development structure to provide training to Namibians, particularly previously disadvantaged Namibians, in technical and non-technical fields.
He said the company had spent over N$231 million over a three-year period to train operators and artisans, and in other capacities.
During this year (2018) 17 graduates that have completed their three-year training, were appointed into substantive roles to build the leadership pipeline, McCullum said.
Women represent 35% of the graduate placements. For 2019 the company intends to offer formalised training programmes to 16 graduates, again with a focus on previously disadvantaged citizens.
Husab has an estimated 20-year lifespan, which McCullum said offers job security and continued economic and social contributions.
Swakop Uranium (SU), the Namibian-registered company that owns the Husab Mine in the Erongo Region, has denied claims that its Namibian workforce is being treated differently than their Chinese counterparts.
Some Namibian employees at the company have alleged that the company’s policies and procedures are not applied equally to all employees, claiming that there is “a lot of injustice and inconsistency”.
The Namibian employees, preferring anonymity, claimed that there is no transparency in the company, and that Chinese nationals have their own meetings on the progress at the company while Namibians are left in the dark.
“Double standards exist between Chinese and Namibian employees. Chinese employees are allowed to sleep on duty while it is a serious offence for Namibians to do so,” the sources claimed.
They also claimed there are no Namibian understudies being trained or guided by Chinese expatriates.
“Instead, it is usually the other way round where Namibians have to train the Chinese expatriates,” one charged, saying Chinese employees’ qualifications are often dodgy.
They said the salaries are inconsistent and that their housing allowances are not competitive with other mining companies.
Husab staff in November last year petitioned the management over similar complaints, but the vice-president of human resources at SU, Percy McCullum, shrugged of the claims as hogwash.
He said the company embraces a multi-cultural environment as one of its core values.
“The successful interaction and integration of the various cultures has nurtured a unique culture in which employees from both countries learn from each other in the work environment and socially with great agility to breed a high-performance culture of diligence, discipline and dedication,” McCullum said.
SU is co-owned by majority shareholder China General Nuclear (CGN), the China-Africa Development Fund (CAD Fund) and Epangelo Mining.
STAFF GROWTH
The construction of the mine started in 2012 and when it started with its operations in 2014, it had 30 permanently employed workers.
Over a period of four years the staff complement grew to 1 619 and about 500 contractor employees that are working at the Husab site.
McCullum said the company is the biggest single employer in the mining industry in Namibia and that it is in fact supporting the national agenda of the Namibian government to alleviate poverty and unemployment.
He said roughly half of the employees are from the youth and unemployed categories. Many of the staff, he said, were recruited from other mining houses and other industries. He said the company usually receives hundreds of applications for vacant positions that are advertised.
McCullum contended that the company does have a competitive salary structure and an official grading system.
“The salaries are benchmarked annually against major companies within the various industries. SU remunerates employees based on levels of experience and other factors impacting on the role. Job descriptions are in place for each role, outlining employees’ duties and responsibilities,” he insisted.
He said CGN, as the majority shareholder, does maintain “reasonable control measures” to guarantee the safety of the operations and return on its investment.
CGN has seconded 35 Chinese employees to SU. This constitutes about 1.8% of all SU employees.
McCullum said these employees are fully integrated into the company’s operations, are highly educated and trained in management and operational systems and provide strategic, financial and technical direction alongside the local management.
TRAINING
McCullum said the company had put in place a comprehensive training and development structure to provide training to Namibians, particularly previously disadvantaged Namibians, in technical and non-technical fields.
He said the company had spent over N$231 million over a three-year period to train operators and artisans, and in other capacities.
During this year (2018) 17 graduates that have completed their three-year training, were appointed into substantive roles to build the leadership pipeline, McCullum said.
Women represent 35% of the graduate placements. For 2019 the company intends to offer formalised training programmes to 16 graduates, again with a focus on previously disadvantaged citizens.
Husab has an estimated 20-year lifespan, which McCullum said offers job security and continued economic and social contributions.
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