An Investigation into the Sunday Work Prohibitions in the South African Mining Industry

Abstract

There have been different views on implementing Section 9 of the 1956 Mines and Works Act, which prohibits certain mining activities on Sundays in the South African mining industry. Mining companies must apply to the department responsible for mining for ministerial permission to perform any work on Sunday. However, some people believe that the prohibitions should be abolished or reviewed. Accordingly, the primary research objective was to develop evidence-based policy proposals to regulate Sunday work prohibitions in South Africa’s mining industry. The research used quantitative methods to examine historical trends and possible implications associated with granting ministerial permissions and analysing solicited views on the prohibitions from stakeholders in the mining industry. Additionally, qualitative methods were used to gather and analyse data through literature review, case studies and interviews. Literature review showed that Sunday work prohibitions have their origins linked to Sunday work restriction laws passed by countries that made Christianity part of the State's administration. Furthermore, the results revealed that valid ministerial permissions increased yearly from 50 in 2015 to 127 in 2022. Analyses of trends and correlations between the valid annual ministerial permissions and safety, production and employment were undertaken to determine the impact of the permissions on these parameters. The results show that an increase in ministerial permissions does not negatively impact safety in most mines. The findings are consistent with the case studies' findings. Similarly, regarding production, most sectors' annual output increased with the increasing number of annual ministerial permissions. The results also show that an increase in ministerial permissions assisted a large mining industry sector in increasing employment. The case studies showed that the reasons for applying to work on Sundays were mainly related to the desire to increase production and address financial sustainability. Interviews revealed that most participants support the retention of Sunday work prohibition but would like the legislation to be reviewed through a consultative process. The international review’s investigation does not v indicate the institutionalisation of Sunday work prohibitions in the mines through legislation. Therefore, it is recommended that the government be aware of the increasing number of applications for ministerial permissions to work on Sundays, consider increasing capacity to address the increase, continue granting the permissions, and initiate a process to review the Sunday work legislation. The research will assist tripartite stakeholders, including policymakers, to make informed policy decisions.