Workers at BHP’s Escondida mine in northern Chile have accepted a new offer from the global miner and will not move forward with a planned strike over safety concerns, reported Reuters.
The Sindicato No. 1 union said that 1,495 members out of the 1,902 who voted accepted the new proposal from BHP. “This proposal contains a series of concrete and verifiable measures to improve the hygiene and safety of workers. Especially an intense joint inspection program between the union and the company of all work areas,” the union said.
Union members rejected an earlier proposal from the miner due to what they considered to be insufficient proposed security measures. They threatened to strike if their demands were not met.
Escondida is the world’s largest producer of copper concentrates and cathodes. BHP operates and owns 57.5% of the Escondida mine, through a joint venture with Rio Tinto (30%) and Japan-based JECO Corp (12.5%).
Source: Reuters