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Johannesburg Miners' claims 'too vague' - lawyer
JOHANNESBURG - 02 Jun 2005 - Claims by former miners that Anglo American should be held liable for the men's respiratory diseases were too vague and unspecific, lawyers for the mining company argued on Thursday.
"The pleading is so wide... it could cover anything," advocate Michael Kuper told the Johannesburg High Court.
A group of eight miners are seeking compensation from Anglo American after contracting silicosis and phthisis during their employment on the company's mines.
The claims covered a 17-year period and two different employers, which further complicated the matter, Kuper said.
"The particulars of the claim failed to specify at what level the silica dust in the mine's atmosphere posed a risk to the miners' health," he said.
Advocate Wim Trengove for the miners said the case, which was in its early stages, was a "test run" and if successful could open the way for similar cases.
Trengove was due to make his submissions after lunch.
Anglo accused of delaying miner case
30 May 2005 - A lawyer for gold miners suing Anglo American after contracting respiratory illnesses while working for the mining giant, accused the company on Monday of deliberately delaying the case.
Human rights lawyer Richard Meeran said Anglo American would seek further technical challenges to the miners' legal claim on Tuesday — nine months after the case first began in the Johannesburg High Court.
Compensation sought for silicosis and TB
The claimants, who are mainly from Welkom, are seeking compensation for gold miners affected by silicosis and phthisis — a combination of silicosis and tuberculosis.
"Anglo American is taking advantage of every technical legal defence to frustrate and delay this case," Meeran said in a statement.
"Their tactics are not illegal — Anglo are entitled to take these technical points if they wish but they are stressful for the miners and their families and are delaying justice to people who need urgent assistance."
The claims relate to employment at various mines which were owned until 1998 by the Anglo American Corporation of South Africa, a parent company which underwent a restructuring in 1999 that resulted in the shifting of its domicile to London.
At the same time ownership of the shares in these mines was transferred to AngloGold.
The statement said evidence showed that the Anglo American parent company was responsible for providing technical and medical advice to all its gold mining operations.
One claimant already dead
It said one of the nine claimants had died and the health of others had deteriorated since the case started.
Samuel Kokosa Kubu (59), was retrenched on May 28, 2001 after contracting silicosis. He had worked for nearly 40 years as a miner.
He died from lung disease including tuberculosis and silicosis on September 15 last year, two weeks after the legal action began.
The claimants are also seeking medical expenses.
"The ultimate objective being to establish a fund to monitor and treat occupational respiratory disease in former gold miners," the statement read.
Increased risk of TB
Over the past 100 years gold mining in South Africa has been responsible for hundreds of thousands of cases of silicosis, the statement read.
Exposure to silica dust increases the risk of tuberculosis was known from at least 1913, it said.
"Dust standards at the mines were based on the assumption that 15 percent of the work force employed for 20 years would develop silicosis," Meeran said.
"On-site showers and change room facilities were not provided at the mineshaft for black workers to remove toxic dust from their clothes and bodies."
Anglo attacks 'vague' claims
Johannesburg - June 02 2005 - Claims by former Anglo American miners seeking compensation after contracting respiratory diseases in the company's mines were "vague and embarrassing", lawyers told the Johannesburg High Court on Thursday. "The allegations are so vague as to make it impossible to know what facts were relied upon," advocate Michael Kuper, representing the gold mining company, said.
He was countering claims in summonses made by advocate Wim Trengove on behalf of eight former gold miners.
According to the claims, the gold mining company was in breach of its legal duties for failing to provide its subsidiary, which employed the miners, with health and safety advice.
The miners were seeking compensation for having contracted silicosis and phthisis during their employment on the company's mines.
According to Kuper, Trengove's claim failed to specify at what stage levels of silica dust posed a "material risk" to the miners' health.
Requiring mineworkers to know what level of silica dust they were exposed to was unreasonable, Trengove countered.
"To demand of the mineworker to know what the level of dust was and what it should have been... requires an unreasonable level of particularity."
He said there was no way for the miners to have knowledge of the mine's dust levels other than through accessing the company's documents, he added.
The defence's first objection to Trengove's claim centred around the relationship between Anglo American, the defendants, and its subsidiary, who employed the miners.
Trengove's claims state that Anglo had a duty to provide health and safety advice to the employer, based on an "understanding" between the two parties.
Kuper objected to the vaguely defined "understanding".
He said since there was no contract between the defendant and the employer, Anglo American would prima facie not have had a "legal duty" to provide the employer with such advice.
Trengove also submitted in his claims that Anglo American failed in its "duty of care" it allegedly owed the miners.
Kuper again countered this by submitting that this was "impermissibly vague".
The claims covered a 17-year period and two different employers, which further complicated the matter, Kuper said.
Anglo American would suffer prejudice by having to respond to claims lacking in particularity, Kuper argued.
One of the case's features was the "overwhelming imbalance of power" between the ill and unemployed workers and "the most powerful corporation in Africa" said Trengove.
He said the case, still in its early stages, was a "test run" and if successful could open the way for similar cases.
Judge MM Joffe reserved judgement on Thursday.
Anglo crit of miners 'unreasonable'
Fri, 03 Jun 2005 - Requiring mineworkers to know what level of silica dust they were exposed to was unreasonable, advocate Wim Trengove told the Johannesburg High Court on Thursday.
"To demand of the mineworker to know what the level of dust was and what it should have been... requires an unreasonable level of particularity."
Trengove is representing eight former gold miners who are seeking compensation from Anglo American after contracting silicosis and phthisis during their employment on the company's mines.
"Vague" summons ·Anglo lawyers
He was responding to claims by Anglo American's lawyers that his summonses were "vague and embarrassing".
According to advocate Michael Kuper, Trengove's claim failed to specify at what stage levels of silica dust posed a "material risk" to the miners' health.
The claims covered a 17-year period and two different employers, which further complicated the matter, Kuper said.
Trengove, appearing for the miners, said the case was a "test run" and if successful could open the way for similar cases.
Judge MM Joffe reserved judgment on Thursday.
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