China-Owned Mines in Zambia Beset by Strikes

(Kitwe) – Ongoing strikes by mine workers in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia are sending shockwaves through Chinese mining companies operating in the region, with many threatening mass layoffs.

Mine workers have staged strikes at copper mines since early October over salaries and working conditions.

In a company statement posted to workers outside the front gate of the Chambishi Mine, NFCA Mining, which runs the Chambishi Copper Mines and a unit of the state-owned China Nonferrous Metals Corp., announced that failure to report to work on October 19 was tantamount to dismissal.