According to a report from the BBC, the International Confederation of Trade Unions (ICFTU) has accused Debswana, of forcibly evicting the employees.
Debswana, the world’s largest producer of uncut diamonds is owned by diamond giant De Beers and the government on a 50/50 basis and is operating four diamond mines - Jwaneng, Orapa, Letlhakane and Damtshaa.
The BBC has quoted ICFTU warning that “such developments could have serious social consequences on the stability of the region”.
It also claims that replacement workers “without a proper grasp of health and safety” have been drafted into the mines to work alongside miners, who opted not to strike.
“Resulting lapses in health and safety have reportedly led to two deaths and a higher rate of accidents in the last few days,” an ICFTU spokesman told the BBC.
However, Debswana spokesperson, Jacob Sesinyi reacted angrily to the report and suggested that ICFTU was compromising its own credibility by accepting anything coming from BMWU.
“They (ICFTU) were also advised by Debswana and they decided against that because it would have cut short their mission,” he said.
He said the ICFTU had not bothered to contact them to verify facts and added: “Our concern is that some members of the union are misusing information to gain support for the illegal strike”.
Sesinyi said the report over deaths was unfortunate and accused the union of using the bereavements of “an off-duty employee in Jwaneng and a non-Debswana employee in Orapa” to gain sympathy and support for their illegal strike action.
He said the two died of natural causes as per preliminary medical reports and added that since the commencement of the strike, there has not been any “increase in reportable accident rates.
“There have been a few minor injuries and accidents, which happen all the time in normal operations,” he said.
The strike has been declared illegal by a Botswana labour tribunal, a judgement which the ICFTU says contravenes the government’s ratification of international labour rights.
The Botswana Mining Workers Union (BMWU) is trying to get the government’s ruling overturned in the courts.
Separately, 33 of its leaders are to go before a judge today to face charges of contempt of court for ignoring the ruling and continuing with the strike.
The BMWU says its workers will only return to work if the court case against its leaders is dropped and all dismissed staff are re-instated.
Debswana, which says that some workers are starting to drift back to work, said all workers must return before any substantial negotiations can take place.
“We are witnessing a number of strikers returning to work,” a Debswana spokesman told BBC News Online. “Not in their hundreds, but in their tens.”
“This is a very positive development and we call on all our employees not to break the law.”
The strike, which began on August 23, is about better pay and bonuses.
While the union wants to see a 16% salary increase and a 35% annual bonus, Debswana is offering only a 10% wage rise and a one-off 10% bonus.
So far, the strike has had little impact on world diamond markets.
“The strike will only have an effect if it spreads and continues for at least a month,” said Stephane Fischler, the International Diamond Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA) general secretary.
About 444 workers have been dismissed for taking part in the nine-day dispute over pay and bonuses.
(Additional reporting by BBC)
