BHP coal mine workers in Australian state set to vote on industrial action

 

Workers at four mines of the BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA), which owns Australia’s largest metallurgical coal fields, will vote on strike action over working conditions and job security, their union said on Wednesday.

The possibility of industrial action at some sites of BHP Group’s (BHP.AX) joint venture with a unit of Mitsubishi Corp (8058.T) in Australia’s Queensland state comes as prices slump due to weaker steel demand in China.

Coking coal futures on the Dalian Commodity exchange closed at 2,192.5 yuan on Sept. 20, down from a high of 3,741 yuan in March.

“We had 15 months of negotiations with BHP, then another three months of negotiations assisted by the Fair Work Commission, but BHP refuse to do the right thing,” Stephen Smyth, the Mining & Energy Union’s (MEU) Queensland president, said in a statement.

 

Mitsubishi Development and BHP, one of the world’s biggest miners, did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

 

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