Anglo American Miners May Seek $117,000 Each in Disease Suit

Workers who contracted silicosis after working on mines that were owned by companies including Anglo American Plc may seek at least 1 million rand ($117,000) each in damages, a lawyer representing them said.

The amount could be reached “quite easily” for each person who got the lung disease, said Richard Spoor, the lawyer who filed an application against 30 companies including Anglo American South Africa Ltd., a unit of Anglo American for class certification of an action for damages in a South African court last month. The petition was made on behalf of workers and dependents of those who died from the illness. There may be more than 200,000 former miners with silicosis throughout southern Africa, he said.