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Lawsuit

Elias & Matis Trading SARL lawsuit (re workers rights at Katanga Copper Company mine, DRC)

Status: ONGOING

Date lawsuit was filed
1 Nov 2023
Date accuracy
Year and Month Correct
Unknown
Workers, Human Rights Defender, NGO, Individual
Location of Filing: Congo (the Democratic Republic of the)
Location of Incident: Congo (the Democratic Republic of the)
Type of Litigation: Domestic

Companies

Glencore Switzerland Metals & steel, Mining, Oil, gas & coal
Katanga Mining Canada Mining

Sources

Snapshot: Elias & Matis Trading SARL is a subcontractor operating at Glencore’s Katanga Copper Company (KCC) mine, one of the world’s major copper and cobalt producers, located in Lualaba Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). KCC, jointly owned by Glencore and the state company Gécamines, has faced longstanding allegations of environmental damage, human rights abuses, and labour violations. In November 2023, the Centre d’Aide Juridico-Judiciaire (CAJJ) filed a class action lawsuit against Elias & Matis Trading on behalf of several workers, accusing it of widespread labour law violations. The case is ongoing.

In November 2023, the Centre d’Aide Juridico-Judiciaire (CAJJ), on behalf of some workers, launched a class action lawsuit against subcontractor Elias & Matis Trading SARL, operating at Glencore’s Katanga Copper Company (KCC) mine. Representing a group of workers, CAJJ’s claim accuses Elias & Matis of multiple breaches of Congolese labour law, including blocking workers' right to unionise, failing to provide medical benefits, unlawfully terminating employees, and withholding essential administrative documents such as payslips. The case is ongoing.