Company announcements

Strike action confirmed by Harmony in the Free State

March 17, 2005

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Harmony confirmed today that the company anticipates approximately 21 000 employees from the original Harmony and Freegold mines in the Free State who are members of the National Union of Mineworkers to go on strike at the night shift. Harmony is currently seeking to interdict Target employees from striking as the company believes they were not included in the original CCMA negotiations.

Solidarity’s proposed secondary strike was deemed to be an illegal strike and that union has subsequently withdrawn their notice to Harmony.

“We have said before we are obviously disappointed it has come to this,” said CE Bernard Swanepoel, “but strikes have a way of focusing people, so perhaps we can use the opportunity to find common ground to resolve the issues NUM have put before us to the benefit of all stakeholders.”

Swanepoel said the outstanding issues were not difficult to agree in principal, but would take time to put into operation.

One of the demands, for example, is for Harmony to implement the Mining Charter with immediate effect. Another is a demand for replacement agreements. Swanepoel said Harmony has recently signed two replacement agreements and had been awaiting other branch committees to contact them to negotiate remaining agreements prior to the notification of the strike.

“Because of the nature of the outstanding issues we have with NUM, we had hoped negotiations would have continued without the disruptions of a strike,” said Swanepoel. “But clearly the retrenchment notices we’ve recently served as a result of planned restructuring have triggered the strike action.”

Harmony Gold

Ferdi Dippenaar
Marketing Director
+27(0)82 807 3684

Vusi Magadana
Investor Relations Officer
Office: +27 11 684 0149
Mobile: +27(0)72 157 5986
vusi.magandan@harmony.co.za

Beachhead Media & Investor Relations

Jennifer Cohen
Office: +27 11 214 2401
Mobile: +27 82 468 6469
jennifer@bmsa.co.za

Patrick Lawlor
Office: +27 11 214 2410
Mobile: +27 82 459 6709
patrick@bmsa.co.za