South African mineworkers have received about us $60.3 million as compensation for asbestos exposure. The deal marks the first time black mineworkers have won damages from a South African company. Gencor, a former mining finance house, brokered the agreement on behalf of its former units -- Gefco and Msauli.
Gencor is among a number of companies around the world facing suits concerning asbestos exposure. Workers exposed to asbestos in the mining or construction industries are at risk of contracting cancer and other respiratory diseases, including mesothelioma and asbestosis.
Most of the payout money (about us $46 million) will go to a trust fund set up to compensate 1,600 workers and their families over the next 25 years. Approximately us $5 million will be retained by Gencor for three years in case of further court action, after which the amount will be put into the main asbestos relief fund.
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