The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) has called on the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to intervene urgently, as prospects at ArcelorMittal South Africa’s Newcastle and Vereeniging Works continue to deteriorate.
With workers at both plants facing deep uncertainty — and the steel producer allegedly withholding salaries — tensions have escalated, further entrenching an already protracted labour and industrial dispute.
This latest development arises directly from NUMSA’s recent picket outside the company, where members drew attention to persistent issues at ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA).
During the demonstration, NUMSA national spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola explained that the union remains aware that the IDC is engaging multiple interested parties in a bid to secure an equity partner for AMSA.
It should be noted, as reported by Newcastillian News in October 2025, these negotiations—valued at approximately R8.5 billion including debt—involve due diligence and the pursuit of private-sector partners to establish a sustainable structure. Yet, following that, as detailed by Newcastillian News in November 2025, AMSA shifted focus to alternative investors after rejecting the IDC’s informal proposal as inadequate, thus underscoring the persistent delays in breaking the deadlock.
In the meantime, operations at Vereeniging and Newcastle have stayed mothballed since late October, which has left workers at home without clear indication of when—or indeed whether—production might resume.
This suspension, building upon earlier setbacks, extends a pattern of temporary extensions and failed interventions across the year. For example, as reported by Newcastillian News in February 2025, AMSA extended the wind-down by one month using R380 million in IDC funding to fulfil orders, but core problems—such as a 33.6% surge in steel imports and a R5.8 billion loss in 2024—persisted unabated.
“To make matters worse, we have been informed by our members that AMSA has allegedly stripped the Newcastle plant of its assets, making any possibility of the company restarting its operations virtually impossible. This is very worrying. It also means that the value of the company will be greatly reduced which may have an impact on any future sale,” highlighted Hlubi-Majola.
Adding to these concerns, the allegations mirror earlier reports regarding asset management. In March 2025, Newcastillian News confirmed Investec’s disposal of non-core land assets, including Saldanha properties valued at R134 million. While these transactions fell outside AMSA’s core operations, they nevertheless amplified fears of incremental dismantling at a time when decisive action was needed to secure Newcastle’s future.
Furthermore, sources within AMSA’s Newcastle Works confirmed to Newcastillian News that asset removal was indeed taking place.
We tried to sought comment from AMSA; however, the company declined to elaborate, citing the sensitivity of ongoing developments.
During the picket, NUMSA handed over a memorandum of demands to the IDC, received by Corporate Affairs Manager Tshepo Ramodibe. Central to the memorandum was the Labour Court’s directive requiring AMSA to reinstate workers at both Vereeniging and Newcastle — a ruling the company intends to appeal.
“In the meantime, it is refusing to pay workers their salaries. This has left hundreds of workers and their families in limbo. They have no idea how they will survive the December period without any form of income,” said Hlubi-Majola, adding that NUMSA condemns the management of ArcelorMittal South Africa for what it views as punitive treatment of workers.
The ruling itself, as outlined by Newcastillian News in October 2025, mandates reinstatement of all unfairly dismissed staff from 21 October 2025, along with resumption of Section 189 consultations within ten days and full interim salary payments. However, AMSA’s subsequent appeal, as reported by Newcastillian News in October 2025, has prolonged the impasse and thereby heightened financial strain on families.
Despite further inquiries from Newcastillian News regarding these allegations, AMSA provided no response by the time of publication.
Facing an ever-more precarious future for thousands, NUMSA escalated its criticism through the memorandum to the IDC.
The union asserted, “NUMSA condemns the executive management at AMSA for their cruel, calculated treatment of workers! Workers are being punished by AMSA management for the fact that the union took them to court. They have been using workers to compel the state into giving them more money, but they are giving workers nothing in return. AMSA Shopstewards have repeatedly declared that the management of AMSA have demonstrated a total failure to run the entity. They received enormous financial support from the state, and yet AMSA is in crisis. Clearly the problem is that they are incapable and the sooner they are removed, the better for the future of AMSA!”
This strong condemnation resonates with earlier accounts of bailout concerns; specifically, as highlighted by Newcastillian News in August 2025, claims surfaced that a R3.75 billion IDC loan meant for job security was redirected towards competitive pricing tactics against rivals—allegations AMSA denied, even amid contractor dismissals without pay.
First, the union urges the IDC to partner in delivering financial relief for affected families until AMSA’s path forward is clarified, insisting workers must not suffer the fallout from purported management failures. Earlier support, including the R417 million Temporary Employee/Employer Relief Scheme sanctioned in March 2025—as indicated by Newcastillian News in March 2025—aided nearly 3,000 staff for 12 months, yet it ultimately fell short in countering ongoing risks to long steel production.
Beyond that, NUMSA reiterates its enduring push for AMSA’s nationalisation under state control, pointing out that the firm—once known as Iscor—was originally public-owned and arguing that reversion makes sense given prevailing leadership shortcomings.
This position also mirrors previous appeals for unified government involvement, as captured in Newcastillian News in January 2025, where General Secretary Irvin Jim called for presidential transparency on negotiations stalled since late 2023 to avert deindustrialisation.
If nationalisation remains off the table, though, NUMSA demands the IDC accelerate the search for a buyer, cautioning that procrastination worsens the crisis and potentially enables further alleged asset erosion. Earlier efforts, like the R1.2 billion rescue initiative in May 2025—as covered by Newcastillian News in May 2025, promoting long steel divestment backed by IDC resources—provided breathing room but did not resolve fundamental pressures from imports and escalating costs.
In addition, NUMSA calls for an independent IDC verification of AMSA’s assets plus swift action to curb any alleged stripping, labelling it “daylight robbery”.
Among protective measures taken were import duties introduced in May 2025 by the International Trade Administration Commission, as described by Newcastillian News in May 2025, aimed at bolstering the facilities—although, as noted by the National Employers’ Association of South Africa in Newcastillian News in April 2025, such deferrals, including the six-month extension, simply obscured underlying flaws.
What is more, NUMSA insists any prospective buyer gain labour’s approval prior to finalising a deal. This emphasis on worker involvement stems from past joint initiatives, among them the task team formed in January 2025—as documented by Newcastillian News in January 2025—intended to mitigate economic impacts, notwithstanding ongoing deficiencies in areas like tariff relief and energy support.
“This matter is urgent and this is why we expect a formal written response from the IDC by close of business by Friday 12th of December 2025,” concluded Hlubi-Majola.
Ultimately, this call encapsulates a full year of narrowly escaped crises, ranging from intensive government discussions in March 2025 to forestall shutdowns—as recounted by Newcastillian News in March 2025—through to the R1.6 billion IDC credit in April that delayed closure until September, per Newcastillian News in April 2025, until operations finally ceased by year-end, gravely impacting Newcastle’s economy as anticipated in Newcastillian News in July 2025.
As the IDC faces mounting pressure to respond by 12 December 2025, the outcome of NUMSA’s demands could determine whether a viable resolution emerges for AMSA or whether the crisis deepens further into deindustrialisation. With production halted and legal battles ongoing, the steel sector’s plight underscores broader challenges facing South African manufacturing, including import competition, energy costs, and the need for effective policy intervention to preserve critical industrial capacity.
The urgency of the situation, particularly ahead of the festive season, highlights the human cost of prolonged uncertainty for thousands of families reliant on these plants. A swift and collaborative response from the IDC, aligned with labour’s input, remains essential to avert irreversible damage to jobs and the national economy.
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One Response
Government allowed this business to decline in sales due to allowing cheaper, low quality, non-tarrifed steel to be manufctured, cutting profits with politics, now NUMSA wants to take on AMSA, whereas they should take on the ANC-government for this …. Government are now battering AMSA from both sides. This is evident that neither government nor NUMSA has the capacity to understand business and how their politics influences business and the people working for AMSA as a business. AMSA should take the ANC Government to court for deterioration of the business and plants in Newcastle and Van der Bijl. Goverment should restructure the political rules and field in which AMSA can operate to benefit people and increase jobs. Government’s way of jobcreation is now evident to be a total failure and this can be used as opportunity to rectify the views of voters for the next election that is around the corner.