By: Daily Investor

Wesizwe Platinum will start talks to cut about 497 jobs at its anchor operation in South Africa as it undertakes a restructuring. 

Maintaining the current headcount of 706 employees at the Bakubung mine “would not constitute a reasonable or sustainable course of action, as it would fail to address the company’s operational challenges,” Wesizwe said in a statement Thursday.

“Viable alternatives to workforce reduction are limited.”

The plan to start talks under section 189 of South Africa’s Labour Relations Act follows Wesizwe directors’ decision to stop its 1 million tons per annum production approach.

It has replaced it instead with a single-stage ramp-up to an operation that will reach 3.5 million tons annually, it said. 

To facilitate the negotiations, Wesizwe will idle operations for three weeks starting Thursday evening. 

South Africa’s jobless rate rose to 32.7% in the first quarter, the highest among countries tracked by Bloomberg.

The announcement adds to a wave of retrenchments at other companies, including steelmaker ArcelorMittal South Africa, where thousands of people have lost their jobs following the closure of its plant in Newcastle.

Glencore’s South African ferrochrome venture this week cancelled 680 planned job cuts after securing approval for lower electricity tariffs, helping its smelting operations avoid losses. 

South Africa is the world’s biggest platinum producer, holding the majority of known reserves in the Bushveld Igneous Complex that straddles the country’s northern and western regions.