Thousands stage sit-in at Amplats mine in S.Africa

Johannesburg (AFP) - Thousands of workers at an Anglo American Platinum mine in South Africa have refused to come out from underground in protest at the suspension of one of their leaders, the firm said Sunday.

The workers, members of the militant Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), have been underground for nearly two days at the top global producer's Dishaba mine in the northern Limpopo province, according to company spokeswoman Mpumi Sithole.

"Anglo American Platinum confirms that approximately 2,300 employees have staged an underground sit-in at its Dishaba mine from 05:00 am (0300 GMT) on Saturday," said Sithole in an email.

"The employees demand that the suspension of an AMCU shop steward be lifted," she added.

The leader was suspended for "a breach of safety regulations".

Strikes have weighed down South Africa's platinum industry with AMCU's rise in the past year, and workers have often downed tools demanding higher pay or different treatment of their leaders.

Police gunned down 34 people at Lonmin's Marikana platinum mine in the northwestern South Africa in August 2012, after ten more were killed in violent strikes the week before.

The clampdown sparked protracted stoppages across the sector which ended with higher salaries and the AMCU supplanting the powerful National Union of Mineworkers as the dominant labour group.