Mining Firms Directed to Release Confined Workers-Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has given all copper and cobalt companies a month to release confined workers by ending these practices
In an open letter, Labour Minister Nene Ilunga Nkula was quoted as saying that the spread of Covid-19 could be slowed down if the practice of restricting workers to the site ended.
In addition to dismissing workers, companies must provide health care, housing, and healthy nutrition to locked-in workers and their families.
The letter published on Twitter states that: “All mining companies that have restricted workers to the company premises are granted a one-month suspension on returning to normal operations.”
Last month, civil society organizations said workers were asked to either stay and work or lose their jobs, the news agency reported.
China Molybdenum’s Glencore subsidiary Katanga Mining, MMG, Tenke Fungurume, Chemaf and Ivanhoe from China Molybdenum are some of the most important companies operating in the southern Congo copper belt.
Last week it was reported that six workers in Glencore’s 75% Kamoto Copper Company (KCC) mine in Lualaba Province were Covid-19 positive.
