Xstrata deal reached after union threatened strike over free worker shares
South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) called off a strike on Wednesday after reaching a deal with Xstrata over the coal giant's voluntary employee share ownership plan.
Xstrata agreed to allocate shares to workers equally and not based on employment grade, NUM's one gripe. Mine ownership and nationalization are once again fiercely debated topics in the country 17 years after the end of white rule and observers believe SA’s allure as an investment destination has been tarnished by the heavy weather accompanying the Xstrata deal. The plan gives workers 3% of the company and is over and above the company’s 26% local ownership obligations which it already meets.