Workers’ Lives
Sometimes you simply can’t put a price tag on labor disagreements and stoppage, though. A few months ago in South Africa, mine workers went on strike and thousands stormed the streets in a call for higher wages.
The move shut down the operation of several mines, leading parent company Lonmin to miss out on around $75 million in production, while the workers themselves missed out on more than a month of wages.
But the strike also cost 34 employees their lives after police opened fire on one of the gatherings. In the end, a total of 50 people died during the labor unrest.
Tensions were especially high because of a rivalry between the two competing unions — Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union and the National Union of Mineworkers — that were both present. It wasn’t until November that workers accepted an offer.
The violence came just a month after 44 died in similar strike-related violence.
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