Nearly R800m paid out in silicosis settlement by Tshiamiso Trust

The Tshiamiso Trust, established to compensate former gold mine workers who contracted silicosis and tuberculosis as a result of working in mines, has paid just under R800m in benefits to eligible claimants.

This was at September 30 2022.

The trust said as they enhance their systems, the number of claims paid will grow.

“We have set ourselves the ambitious target of paying 10,000 cumulative claims by the end of the next financial year (February 2023). With 8,917 claims paid as of September 30 2022, we are well on our way to meeting and exceeding our target,” it said.

Insufficient documentation is the primary reason for certification delays.

“Claims related to deceased mineworkers are especially difficult to process with limited documented information on the cause of death, which must be diagnosed as either work-related silicosis or cardio-respiratory tuberculosis to qualify for compensation. To aid in substantiating these claims, the trust has partnered with government bodies and provincial health departments to access historical health data, unabridged death certificates, post-mortem reports and medical records from clinics and hospitals. This is a mammoth task as most archives dating back to 1965 have not been digitised,” it said.

For living claimants, the trust relies on medical professionals and benefit medical examinations to confirm the presence of compensable disease.

The trust said these are time-consuming processes and the scarcity of and demands on  occupational and pulmonary health specialists within the health sector are compounding factors.

“We also need to be mindful of the time periods built into the trust deed. This includes a 90-day period for beneficiaries to be added to claims and a 90-day allowance for certification by the agent who represents the mining companies. The reality is there are many dependencies beyond our control, and it is clear the trust’s initial estimate of six months to process claims was unrealistic.,” it said.

However, the trust said its mandate remains to find and pay every eligible claimant.

The trust was formed after a R5bn settlement in a 2018 class action lawsuit was reached to be paid out over 13 years. The Tshiamiso Trust was set up in terms of the settlement, with a mandate to ensure those who have silicosis or work-related tuberculosis are compensated.

Six mining companies were party to the agreement: African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Gold Fields, Harmony and Sibanye-Stillwater.

In terms of the settlement agreement, miners who worked at mines operated by one of the six companies between March 12 1965 and December 10 2019 are potentially eligible for compensation. The compensation for qualifying miners largely depends on the level of lung impairment suffered by the ex-miner or the results of a post-mortem lung inspection.

TimesLIVE