Tshiamiso Trust struggling to identify miners for compensation 12 April 2021 - 07:20
Nearly two years after a R5bn landmark ruling that would change the lives of former mineworkers who contracted deadly lung diseases at work, only seven claimants have been paid out – and that was just a trial run.
The Tshiamiso Trust last month made payments to seven people but CEO Daniel Kotton said they were faced with a mammoth task which could take up to 10 years to finalise.
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Tshiamiso Trust progress update
The Tshiamiso Trust provided an update regarding the claims process for prospective recipients of benefits for current and former mineworkers who have contracted silicosis or work-related tuberculosis on 82 gold mines since March 1965.
The silicosis and tuberculosis class action settlement and Trust Deed was agreed between six mining companies and the attorneys representing mineworkers wanting to claim damages against those companies. The companies that were party to the settlement agreement are African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American SA, AngloGold Ashanti, Gold Fields, Harmony and Sibanye-Stillwater.
Latest figures
As of 20 January 2021, prospective claimants were able to begin booking appointments at 50 lodgement offices in mining centres and areas from which labour has historically been drawn in South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, Eswatini and Botswana. And from 15 February 2021, those offices were opened to accepting the lodgement of documents
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The processing of claims in the historic R5-billion class action settlement on behalf of gold miners who contracted the incurable lung disease silicosis is now up and running, the trust managing the payments said on Tuesday. It is a long and winding road, but justice is starting to be served for a historic wrong that literally left those wronged breathless.
Seven claimants have already been paid in a pilot project and now general claims are being processed, trustees of the Tshiamiso Trust told journalists during an online press briefing on Tuesday. The logistics and administrative tasks are mammoth, which explains why the trust, launched last year, has an initial 12-year life span. It hopes to have its work wrapped up before then.
Silicosis trust set to ramp up compensation payments to victims
By Dineo Faku
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The Tshiamiso Trust yesterday said it would set up infrastructure to fast track compensation of the silicosis and tuberculosis (TB) victims in mines after only seven of the historic R5 billion claimants had been paid to date.
Speaking during the virtual launch press conference, the trust’s chief operating officer, Tina da Cruz said Tshiamiso had started processing claims.
“To date we have paid seven claims and there are quite a number of claims in the pipeline.
“We have completed over 400 benefit medical examinations (BMEs),” Da Cruz said, adding that the trust was in the process of confirming the work history of the applicants.