The city of gold is losing its shine as it continues to neglect the lives of miners.
Visiting the Gold Reef City Mining Exhibition was an unforgettable experience that dropped me into the depths of Johannesburg’s rich gold mining history. I was welcomed by tour guides laughing loudly with all-teeth showing. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming as I was given a safety helmet and torch to go underground. As I prepared to descend the shaft, a wave of anticipation mixed with anxiety washed over me. The gate of the shaft was sealed shut and my guide began her rehearsed rant as my heart raced at each gradual bump I felt, as we began to descend. The sun disappeared the lower we went and my grip on the railing tightened. The mine entrance glistened with light streams of water as we were engulfed in darkness.
We are now 75m underground, the chilly air shocked me as I was expecting a wave of heat, but the calm tour guide Zakile shared that it was due to the ventilation underground. I could see smoke appear as I talked, my hand searching for my torch to take it all in. The dim light flickered as we passed through narrow mine tunnels, Zakile pointing out the rocks and mannequins placed to give a more realistic experience. You can hear each thump of our steps, leaving an echo, the trickling of water droplets from the walls. The walls around us were rough and hard, the decades of extraction felt, right on my fingertips. I can see the remnants of thousands of miners who have been down this mine, day in and day out, dealing with harsher conditions than what we are experiencing now. The souls that have walked these pathways and helped make Johannesburg the City of Gold it’s known to be today.
The life of David Muphandu
My experience couldn’t have been further removed from the dangerous realities that gold miners face every day. Long hours spent in tight cramped tunnels, thick hot air, sweat dripping from their foreheads, a life David Muphandu, a miner of over 14 years, knows all too well.
“I would clock in at 05:00, then once I clock in, I go straight to the shaft waiting for the cage to go down. The shaft was supposed to come and collect us past six, then we go down,” says Muphandu, his cadence is slow and monotone, as he recalls his days at the mine “[By] 08:00, we have a safety meeting underground. After [the] safety meeting, we sign the book [to confirm attendance], then we go straight to the workplace,” he shares.
Muphandu would ensure that the machine he is operating works properly, because any faulty part could lead to serious injury. He exits the mine when they are done after 13:00 or 14:00, he pulls out his silver container as he proceeds to quickly eat his lunch. After work he removes his Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), showers, puts on his home clothes and leaves.
Having a typical nine to five is rare in the mining industry. “It depends sometimes, if we don’t work well straight, maybe we have a delay of tools or maybe someone is not there. Sometimes we can leave latest let’s say at 17:00 or 18:00,” he says.
His story reflects the reality behind the shiny image of Johannesburg as the city of gold and pulls into question its status as a world- class African city.
Where it all began
Gold was first discovered in the Witwatersrand area in 1886 by George Harrison, which led to the Witwatersrand Gold Rush. Johannesburg was soon established as a mining town and rapidly became South Africa’s largest city and economic hub often called the “City of Gold” due to the massive gold deposits in its surrounding areas.
In the early 20th century, Johannesburg’s economy and urban growth revolved heavily around deep underground mining operated by large corporations. The mining industry attracted a diverse workforce, including local Black Africans who worked in difficult, often dangerous conditions, as well as skilled European miners.
The mining industry is full of diversity, “On the mine, we are not the same and we come from different places, there [are] people from Maputo, there’s people from Lesotho, there’s people from Mthatha, there’s people from KZN, there’s people from Venda, people from Bush, people from different places,” says Muphandu.
Over more than a century, gold mining has driven Johannesburg’s development but also left a legacy of social inequality, environmental damage, and health issues, not just for the miners, but the community surrounding the mine.
In recent decades, Johannesburg’s gold mining has declined due to depletion of shallow deposits, rising operational costs, infrastructure challenges, and global market shifts. Most of the mines have shut down, jobs have been lost, and the sector’s contribution to the city’s economy has decreased, in comparison to other metal groups, such as platinum.
Johannesburg faces the challenge of balancing its identity as a historic “City of Gold” with the realities of a contracting, troubled mining industry that continues to impact many workers’ lives.
Golds contribution to the economy
The average price of gold as of October, 2025, has risen significantly, reaching around R59, 169 ( $3, 275) per ounce, and would waver between R48, 939 and R75, 385 per ounce throughout the year. This creates space for investment in the country and potential socio- economic growth. The gold mining industry’s contribution to South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been decreasing slowly over the past five years due to the depletion of gold and increased global competition. Out of all the primary platinum metal groups, gold is performing or contributing the least in production.
“The gold price is doing very well in the international market. I mean it’s now on record price; it’s now on four thousand dollars an ounce,” says Livhuwani Mammburuu, the head of communications for the National Union of Mine Workers. The new developments in the gold price are exciting however miners are not able to take part in claiming the fruits of their labour. “You will find a situation where the executives’ pay themselves millions of bonuses and workers who work hard underground do not get anything,” he says.
The realities of working in the gold mining industry
In 2025 the lives of gold miners remain challenging as they try to adapt to changing circumstances. Many miners that are employed on formal operations still experience low and fixed wages. [The] National Union of Mine Workers (NUM) is having wage negotiations with one of the biggest gold companies in South Africa, called Sibanye-Stillwater, and the negotiations are not going well at all,” says Mammburuu.
“We have just recently declared a dispute with Sibanye-Stillwater, because we do not agree on the wage offer that they’re presenting to us. They are presenting 4,5% salary increase, which- the NUM, is not happy with,” he says.
“It’s very tough [when] you are dealing with a company that does not want to pay good salaries for its employees who are our members,” says Mammburuu, breathing heavily with anger and frustration.
Many miners, face physically demanding and often hazardous working conditions deep underground. These miners work for hours with varying hours to make more money.
“According to the working hours it was eight hours, but because of delay of work and transport to take us to the surface, sometimes we could be there for two days, the shaft being damage, there is no escape road for emergency,” Muphandu says. “Sometimes we take shortcuts to finish the job or manage time, but these shortcuts are more dangerous. Before working, we must put in temporary support and wait for the safety officer’s approval, but sometimes the safety officer doesn’t come. We are often forced to use old tools because of delays in new tool deliveries, which is very dangerous and can lead to accidents,” he says.
South Arica’s gold mining industry reported a total of 11 fatalities in 2024, which is a 45% decrease from 20 in 2023, the industry still has a long way to go to ensure zero fatalities.
“There is the Mine Health and Safety Act, companies need to adhere to [it], at NUM we are still worried about workers that are still dying underground. It’s not enough to see workers fatalities happening in the mines, we want to see a situation where there are zero fatalities and zero injuries in the mining industry, that’s what we are striving for,” says Mammburuu.
“There were people who got sick, so we always wear masks and full PPE before getting on the cage to go underground. But underground, because it’s hot, many take off their masks, which is wrong, since it helps prevent dust and coughing from spreading illnesses like TB. I personally never got sick from the mine, but I once fell because I incorrectly put my safety belt on, and I injured my left leg. Some miners even fall off the cage before it reaches the ground, it can get very dangerous underground,” says Muphando.
The living conditions of miners remain inhumane. Many miners have resorted to living in shacks, as these are the only form of housing closest to the mine. “If you look at- where these mines are situated, you’ll see a lot of shacks around those mines. Our members are also getting a living at allowance. A living at allowance is equal as a housing allowance so members when they get that living at allowance, they’ve got a duty to go and rent or buy decent houses, “says Mammburuu.
Ntando Ndlovu, a fourth-year mining and engineering student, did his vacation work at the Sibanye-Stillwater mine. “They said to me if you don’t enjoy your job you are going to do the least and but for them, they actually enjoy what they are doing, in a team environment, that team dynamic is actually what keep[s] them going every now and then,” Ndlovu says.
Miners must receive a fair income to support their families. When one mine is no longer operating or supportive, they will move to a different mine. “Yeah, but you know now the mine industry, especially if you no longer have that mentality to mine, you always discuss which shaft pays and how to get there, so some of us left and went to Rustenburg’s platinum mines where it was better, but then COVID-19 happened and we couldn’t get in, though some friends still work there; you know, to work in SA you have to do something or get information,”Muphando says. “I quit the mine, during COVID-19, so I left around 2020 or 2021.”
The future of gold mining in Johannesburg
As gold mines around Johannesburg continue to shut down and lay off miners who depend on that income, what is a way forward for this once fruitful industry? “We see poverty, we see shacks, to be honest there is nothing much that is being done to empower communities and empower mine workers themselves. We don’t really see much of what mining is doing for communities around Gauteng,” says Mammburu.
Non-profit organizations find ways to include and support mine workers that have been retrenched due to a mine shut down, to find other means of employment. Providing miners with skills that can support them on and off the mine can be beneficial for the whole community.
“We’ve [NUM] got an entity called Mine Workers Development Agency. It helps our members who are retrenched, to start businesses and – farming – it is playing a very big role to empower those workers that have been retrenched. The other thing the NUM is doing is we have built an artisan academy. [The miners] get trained, they get qualifications and become qualified artisans, they go and look for jobs again.”
“The gold price is increasing exponentially, but from where I was the gold is depleting, so the mine will close in three to five years to come. It’s a major issue because most of the people in the surrounding community rely on the Sibanye water operation,” Ndlovu says.
The current high gold price offers hope for investment within the country and improved working conditions for miners. However, we need to come to terms with a harsh reality. Johannesburg cannot claim its place as a world-class African city when the very people who built it continue to struggle daily. True wealth and progress within a city is seen through the lives of those who live and breathe it. The abundance from gold wealth needs to be shared fairly and miners’ dignity and livelihoods need to be prioritised and valued.
FEATURED IMAGE: The above photograph shows the passageway of the Gold Reef City mine, located 75 meters underground. The dimly lit tunnel echoes the footsteps of over 40,000 miners who travelled this path decades ago, offering a glimpse into the challenging conditions deep within Johannesburg’s historic gold mine. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
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