ArcelorMittal Signs New Collective Agreement: What Did Miners Achieve?

Labour disputes between miners' trade unions and ArcelorMittal Temirtau resumed after the November tragedy at the Abai mine, when a methane release killed six miners

The management of ArcelorMittal Temirtau JSC and the leaders of the trade unions of the company's steel, coal and iron ore departments took part in signing a new collective agreement for the coming three years.

"This document governs labour relations and socio-economic issues between the employer and the workforce, establishes additional benefits and guarantees, and delineates the rights and obligations of the parties to ensure the enterprise's effective operation. The agreement enters into force on 1 January 2022 and remains valid through 31 December 2024 inclusive," the statement said.

During discussions on the draft collective agreement with trade union representatives, the following new provisions were introduced:

• purchase of an apartment for the family of an employee who dies while performing their job duties;
• payment of childcare benefit for children under 3 to fathers (in exceptional cases, by decision of a bilateral commission);
• priority right to retain employment for one of a married couple both working at the company (in the event that both spouses' positions face redundancy);
  paid leave for medical screening (3 working days a year);
  paid leave for registering a pregnancy by 12 weeks (3 working days);
• an interest-free loan of up to 1 million tenge to restore housing in the event of an emergency (fire, flood);
• In addition, extra pay (in some cases doubled or more) for expanding the scope of duties and combining roles was significantly increased, along with bonuses for the title "Veteran of the Enterprise" and bonuses for employees' personal milestone birthdays (50, 55, 60 and beyond).

"The collective agreement for the next three years retains the full range of social guarantees and benefits for employees and non-working pensioners under the current agreement. It also introduces fundamentally new provisions designed to improve employees' social security," said ArcelorMittal Temirtau JSC General Director Biju Nair.

Miners had earlier secured 100% wage indexation to the inflation rate effective 1 January each year. In addition, in December the coal department will pay a one-off 13th salary regardless of whether production and economic targets are met. Miners will also be able to take out a mortgage at 5% through Otbasy Bank.

As a reminder, questions about the financial and physical safety of miners came to the fore following the tragedy at the Abai mine, where a methane release occurred at 08:24 on 7 November. Six miners in the working face died as a result, and two were hospitalised in serious condition. According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, responsibility for the incident lies entirely with ArcelorMittal Temirtau JSC.

Source: sputnik.kz