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Employees at BHP's Escondida mine in Chile reject agreement deal, union says

Workers at BHP's Escondida, the world's biggest copper mine, rejected an offer for a brand-new collective bargaining contract, setting the stage for a potential strike, the union said on Thursday.

A total of 2,371 workers, or about 99.75% of union members, voted in favor of the strike. In a declaration, the union said the call for a strike was overwhelmingly backed by partners that saw the deal made no genuine progress towards employee objectives.

The union reiterated its demand for 1% of dividends to disperse equally amongst employees and said the present offer by the company also extended work days and cut benefits.

The declaration said the current offer utilizes one-time. perks that attempt to conceal the conclusive loss of conditions.

Chilean legislation lets either celebration call for five days of. government mediation, extendable by another five days if both. parties agree, to prevent a strike.

In a declaration, BHP stated it would ask for federal government. mediation in the coming days and wants to reach an agreement. suitable with worker goals and Escondida's future. sustainability.

BHP owns majority of Escondida, along with Rio Tinto. and JECO Corp.

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(source: Reuters)