BHP's Escondida, supervisors hold talks in bid to avert strike
SANTIAGO - In a last-ditch effort to avoid a strike, the supervisors' union at BHP's Escondida copper mine in Chile and company representatives are holding talks, the union said late on Tuesday.
Earlier in the day, the union announced it would begin a strike on Wednesday after mediation efforts to tie up a new collective labor contract had failed.
The union was summoned to government-mediated talks to hold another meeting with the company and will be giving updates on the negotiations, the union said in a message sent to its members seen by Reuters
The possibility of a strike at the world's largest copper mine has been supporting copper prices as any stoppage would tighten global supply
A BHP spokesperson in Chile did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The supervisors' union has been embroiled in fraught contract negotiations with Escondida for several weeks, and has been threatening a strike if talks were to fail
Earlier on Tuesday, the union said it made an offer incorporating 90% of company proposals plus key union demands including salary increases and production bonuses
The union said the company demanded workers give up essential benefits and insisted on sharing private biometric data with third parties
Escondida, in Chile's northern Atacama Desert, is majority-owned and operated by BHP. Rio Tinto holds a 30% stake and Japan-based JECO owns 12.5%.
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