In Chile, workers at the world’s largest copper mine end their strike

“After discussions (…) we accepted the company’s new proposal“, announced in a press release the union called N°1, which represents 2,400 workers, the majority of the workforce. For its part, the mining group affirmed, on Friday, August 16, that it had reached a “consensus on a collective contract proposal”. According to the union, the parties have reached agreements on pensions and health coverage. Located in the Atacama Desert, the Escondida mine is controlled by the Australian BHP. In 2023, it produced 1.1 million tonnes of copper, or 5.4% of global production and 21% of Chile’s.

The workers had also long demanded that an amount equivalent to 1% of the dividends paid to the foreign shareholders of the mine be distributed to the workers. An agreement on the subject “has been almost reached”the union assured. Each of the unionized workers should receive a bonus equivalent to $35,000. The Chilean government expressed on Wednesday its hope that the strike would not last long, given the impact it could have on the national economy.

In 2017, Escondida workers held a 44-day strike, the longest in Chilean mining history. The strike caused $740 million in losses and led to a 1.3% contraction in Chile’s GDP. Escondida workers earn wages well above the national average in Chile, but in line with those charged by Chile’s powerful copper industry, the world’s largest, which generates between 10 and 15% of the country’s GDP. The strike came amid rising global copper prices.