Los Pelambres union urges workers to support strike action

Cecilia Jamasmie | September 25, 2022 | 11:58 am News South America Copper 
Los Pelambres union urges workers to support strike action
Contract negotiations between Antofagasta and Los Pelambres union. (Image by the Board of Supervisors of the Los Pelambres Union.)

The union at Antofagasta’s (LON: ANTO) Los Pelambres copper mine in Chile has rejected the company’s most recent contract offer and launched a strike threat.

In a media statement, the Board of the Supervisors Union of Los Pelambres said that even though at first glance the company’s proposal seems attractive, it doesn’t include all the demands presented by the workers and is far from what was expected by both leadership and union members.

“The company’s offer does not recognize or compensate us at the same level as our colleagues from the other AMSA [Antofagasta Minerals] companies and from the industry, despite the fact that Pelambres is the largest contributor to the group in terms of production, profits and profitability (52%). Under these circumstances, as directors, we take a specific position: reject the last offer and, at the same time, call our bases to vote for the strike on September 29 and 30,” the commiuniqué reads.

The union leadership urged workers to join the general assemblies taking place the last week of September, read the company’s last offer in detail and get informed on how to vote in favour of the strike.

It is still uncertain how a strike at Los Pelambres would affect Antofagasta’s full-year copper production. However, the company had already announced, back in June, that it was likely to reach only the lower end of its previous guidance of 660-690,000 tonnes, following a series of community-led blockades and protests in the High Valley of Salamanca.

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