Justicia Shipena
Beifang Mining Services (BMTS) and the Mineworkers Union of Namibia (MUN) have suspended two branch executive committee members at the Husab Project and withdrawn recognition of them as union representatives.
In a joint memorandum dated 13 February seen by the Windhoek Observer and addressed to all BMTS employees at the Husab Project, the company said Gebhard Shikongo and Elia Katupose have been suspended from work.
The two previously served as BEC members. The matter was communicated to both national and regional union leadership.
The memorandum states that Shikongo, described as interim chairman, had been spreading claims about officials from the Ministry of Justice and Labour, specifically a labour inspector.
BMTS and MUN said after making enquiries, the ministry denied that any of its labour inspectors had provided such advice to the union.
Beifang Mining instructed employees not to follow or act on any communication, instruction or directive issued by the two individuals in relation to company or union matters.
Employees were reminded that compliance with the new roster is mandatory. The company warned that any employee who fails to report for duty according to the scheduled roster will be regarded as absent without official leave and may face disciplinary action.
It added that it reserves the right to take disciplinary steps against any employee who disrupts operations. BMTS stated that it remains committed to resolving labour differences through legal channels but will protect employee safety and operational integrity.
The company said it may take legal action over the ongoing unlawful acts. This could include filing criminal complaints with the police and starting civil cases to recover operational and financial losses.
The memorandum was signed by Beifang Mining HR head Abraham Christiaan on behalf of the company and regional chairman Niklaas Afrikaner on behalf of MUN.
The suspensions followed formal engagement between the company and the Ministry of Justice and Labour over a new shift pattern.
In a letter dated 2 February 2026 to managing director JinJun Li, the ministry confirmed it had received the company’s request on 22 January 2026 to introduce a new operational shift pattern to comply with section 20(2) of the Labour Act (Act 11 of 2007).
The ministry recognised the company’s commitment to comply with the law, noting that employees must receive at least 36 consecutive hours of rest per week unless the minister grants an exemption.
In that letter, the ministry’s executive director, Ben Nangombe, directed the company to comply with the statutory requirements of the Labour Act at all times unless formally exempted.
The directive contradicted claims circulating among workers that labour inspectors had approved certain arrangements.
On the ground, the changes took effect through internal communication. In a message shared with the Windhoek Observer, a mining supervisors’ group told employees to ignore previous communications. The message reads, “From the legal perspective, we must run all shifts following the new roster.”
The message stated that from that day only the day shift, identified as Team B, the construction team and new operators would work from 08h20 to 20h00. The rest of the teams would follow the new roster as normal, according to the WhatsApp communication.
According to the communication, the changes would affect production but were necessary from a legal point of view.
At the same time, tension grew within the union. In a separate letter dated 12 February 2026, employees at the Hausab Project notified MUN that they had lost confidence in four members of their bargaining executive committee.
The letter named Ruben Nghiyonanye, Mosses Andreas, Matias Gideon and Jesaya Gideon, stating that they “are no longer serving the best interests of the employees”.
Members directed MUN to immediately remove the four representatives from the employees’ representative committee.
The letter states that members have “lost trust and confidence in them representing the employees’ interests per clause 6 of the MUN constitution.
The employees said the decision had been long overdue and instructed the regional MUN office to release the four representatives from their duties within 48 hours of receiving the grievance letter.
They warned that if MUN fails to comply, they will withdraw and resign from the union and will no longer require its services. The letter is accompanied by the signatures of affected employees.
