NUM to lay charges after police fire rubber bullets
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Thursday said it would open a case against the police after some of its members were injured while protesting outside the Hendrina Power Station in Mpumalanga.
According to the NUM, police fired rubber bullets and assaulted members who were protesting peacefully.
"The workers who were protesting peacefully were provoked by the police who fired rubber bullets and several of our members were injured. One NUM member is currently in hospital in Witbank. He had suffered a broken leg after being allegedly assaulted by the police," the NUM said.
The union said police continued to fire rubber bullets at Hendrina and Tutuka Power Stations in Mpumalanga this morning.
"The NUM members will not be intimidated by the police. The NUM is extremely disappointed at the action of the police. We call on the police to stop assaulting and shooting our members for protesting peacefully.
This comes after the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) on Wednesday said Eskom, the NUM, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) and Solidarity have all accepted its offer to assist in the Eskom wage dispute.
The NUM members are demanding a 10 percent wage increase for the lowest paid employees and 8.5 percent for the highest paid employees at Eskom as well as a housing allowance of R3000.