Gold Miner Smuggles in Workers by Night to Bypass Strikers
- Workers have been on strike at South Deep mine since Nov. 2
- Gold Fields smuggling small maintainance teams into mine
Lights illuminate a mining truck moving through an underground tunnel at the South Deep gold mine.
Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Gold Fields Ltd. is having to sneak maintenance teams into its South Deep mine in South Africa after protesters shot at vehicles trying to enter the site, where workers have been on strike since Nov. 2.
Small teams of essential workers are using secret entrances to enter the mine and sometimes have to be smuggled in during the night to pump water, monitor equipment and undertake general maintenance work, said company spokesman Sven Lunsche.