Trade union Solidarity has asked for a 15 percent wage increase for gold and coal sector workers.

The union submitted the proposals for negotiation in the coal and gold sectors to the Chamber of Mines, it said in a statement on Friday.

The proposals were not only sustainable for the companies concerned, but would also look after the best interests of the employees, said union spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans.

"The current economic climate will definitely put pressure on this year's negotiations, but Solidarity's demands will take into account the financial successes of mining companies during the past two years, and for this reason the companies are now still able to remunerate their employees with a liveable wage," he said.

In addition the gold price recently traded at record levels, which placed gold companies in a very favourable financial position.

The union's proposals were also based on the latest CPI figure, medical and food inflation as well as the inflation on administered prices.

"Although the current CPI figure is lower than last year this time, the inflation for February 2009, calculated at 8.6 percent, is still 0.5 percent higher than in January this year."

AngloGold Ashanti, GoldFields and Harmony Gold were represented in the gold sector at the Chamber of Mines. AngloCoal, BHP Billiton and a division of Exxaro were some of the largest companies in the coal sector.

Wage negotiations at the chamber would begin next month.