Lonmin - Signing of New Era Labour Agreement

Lonmin - Signing of New Era Labour Agreement                                    
Lonmin Plc                                                                      
(Incorporated in England)                                                       
(Registered in the Republic of South Africa under registration number           
1969/000015/10)                                                                 
ISIN code: GB0031192486                                                         
Share code: LON                                                                 
Issuer code: LOLMI                                                              
("Lonmin")                                                                      
Signing of New Era Labour Agreement                                             
Lonmin Plc, the National Union of Mineworkers ("NUM"), Solidarity and UASA      
announce that they have agreed and signed a New Era Labour Agreement (the       
"agreement").  This innovative agreement represents a new era in labour         
relations at Lonmin and has been drawn up and finalised by the joint union      
management problem solving forum (JUMPS), a committee made up of representatives
from Lonmin management and NUM, Solidarity and UASA.                            
The agreement is effective from 1 October 2005 for a 5-year term and covers all 
employees at Lonmin"s mining operations at Marikana, South Africa.   The        
agreement is a living agreement and the parties have committed to continuous    
problem solving through the JUMPS structure.                                    
Under the terms of the agreement basic pay will be increased annually by a      
percentage equal to the South African CPIX inflation measure.  Employees will   
have the opportunity to earn bonuses over and above CPIX by sharing in the      
improvements they achieve in costs and productivity under a gain sharing scheme,
called Platinum Plus.  The terms of the gain share will allow employees to share
on an equal basis in an annual bonus pool equivalent to 25% of improvements in  
costs and productivity over an agreed base value.                               
The agreement equalises the pay and conditions of employees across the Lonmin   
property and eliminates the historical differences that existed between each of 
Lonmin"s three mines.                                                           
Lonmin employees will be invited to participate in shaping the future of the    
Lonmin business though the continued existence of JUMPS and will be encouraged  
to share their ideas for the continuous improvement of the operations.  These   
ideas will be evaluated and implemented using Lonmin"s existing Six Sigma       
programme.                                                                      
The wage agreement with employees at Lonmin"s Western Platinum Refinery ends in 
September 2006 and will be re-negotiated at that time.                          
Commenting on the new agreement, Brad Mills, Chief Executive Officer said:      
"The New Era Labour Agreement marks a new chapter in labour relations in South  
Africa. For the first time labour and management are working together to build a
healthy business and have both given up their adversarial past. I want to thank 
the leadership of all of the unions for their bold vision and courage in joining
us in this agreement which for the first time aligns the work force with the    
enterprise"s business case. Our Platinum Plus gain sharing programme represents 
a real opportunity for our workers to participate in the success of our         
improving business. The long term nature of the agreement and our commitment to 
continuous problem solving will ensure that the interests of management and the 
unions stay aligned over time."                                                 
Commenting on the new agreement, Victor Tseka, Lonmin Co-ordinator of NUM said: 
"The JUMPS process and New Era Labour Agreement has been a totally new challenge
for NUM and Lonmin.  Having completed the process we believe that this living   
agreement represents the best outcome for our members and a new opportunity to  
work together to benefit both Lonmin and its employees.  We believe this        
represents the new era for the mining industry, South Africa and Africa"        
Commenting on the new agreement, Gerhard Viljoen, Co-ordinator, Solidarity said:
"It took courage from all of Lonmin"s employees to enter into this agreement    
taking into consideration our past history in the mining industry.  This        
definitely marks a new chapter for labour relations in South Africa and could   
provide a blue print for other mining companies currently involved in           
negotiations.  "                                                                
Commenting on the new agreement, Hannes Scholtz, UASA Co-ordinator said:        
"UASA found the negotiation and completion of the New Era Labour Agreement a    
challenging event.  It is from now on that every Lonmin employee will have to   
prove we are each willing and able to make the process workable.  In making the 
agreement workable it can only create a harmonious workforce."                  
Enquiries:                                                                      
Alex Shorland-Ball, Vice President, Investor Relations & Communications, Lonmin 
plc                                                                             
Tel: +44 (0)7917 038 684 or +27 (0)14 571 2032 (22 June only)                   
Nadja Vetter and Anthony Cardew, Cardew Group                                   
Tel: +44 (0)20 7930 0777                                                        
Date: 22/06/2005 09:30:35 AM Supplied by www.sharenet.co.za                     
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