Lawyers acting for thousands of miners suffering from silicosis and TB have called on the state to review legislation regulating compensation for those who contract occupational lung diseases on the mines, according to a report in The Star. Richard Spoor, from Richard Spoor Inc, told the Parliament's Mineral Resources Committee that there was an urgent need for the state to reconsider the compensation system.

The current compensation system borrows from two laws. One is the Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act, which compensates workers and their dependants who have contracted occupational lung diseases caused by exposure to dust in mines.

The Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act compensates all workers for occupational injuries and diseases, with the exception of lung diseases caused by exposure to dust in mines. Spoor said that under these laws, the capacity of inspectorates to monitor compliance by employers was limited. ‘Prosecutions for non-compliance are extremely rare. I am not aware of a single prosecution or mine health and safety inquiry. There are no civil or criminal sanctions for non-compliance; employers have few incentives to improve health and safety in the workplace,’ he is quoted as saying.

Full report in The Star (subscription needed)

Lawyers are optimistic an out-of-court deal with implicated gold companies will be reached by next month. A Moneyweb report notes the High Court last year set the stage for protracted proceedings on silicosis and TB cases dating back decades in the largest class action suit yet. Gold miners are appealing that ruling, but at the same time, six of the firms – including Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti and Sibanye – are holding settlement talks with the workers. Spoor and Charles Abrahams told the committee that significant progress had been made in those discussions and the parties were ‘reasonably confident’ a settlement will be achieved this year. The report notes the suit has its roots in a landmark ruling by the Constitutional Court in 2011 that for the first time allowed lung-diseased miners to sue their employers for damages.

Full Moneyweb report