Workers strike at world's largest copper mine company
Updated at: 1009 PST, Tuesday, July 12, 2011
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SANTIAGO: Riot police used water canons and tear gas on thousands of protesters marching in Santiago in support of copper miners who are striking across the country.
Riot police turned their water canons and canisters of tear gas on thousands of Chilean miners and their supporters who were marching in Santiago on Monday night (July 11) in support of striking workers at Codelco, the world's top copper miner.
Water canons and tear gas were used by police to disperse the protesters as clashes broke out when the march reached a central square in the Chilean capital.
Television footage showed police detaining at least two protesters.
The strike by Codelco workers on Monday is their first national strike in nearly two decades and the latest in a growing feud between workers and the government over the future of the world's top copper miner.
Union leaders fear that the ongoing restructuring of Codelco -- ordered by conservative President Sebastian Pinera -- could lead to benefit cuts, huge layoffs and the sale of world-class deposits that are key to the state's finances
The day-long work stoppage is not believed to be hurting Codelco's output target, but it raised the risk of more labor strife in Chile, the world's top copper producer, that could disrupt an already fragile supply pipeline.
Employees of Codelco's No. 1 mine, Chuquicamata in the country's arid north, were the first to halt work on Monday. They were followed by workers at the company's Tenet mine, where picketers blocked access roads to the underground deposit. Transportation routes were also blocked by workers at Codelco's Angina and Radom Tonic mines and the Ventages copper smelter.
Pinera had already been struggling with student demonstrations over state education funding.
The center-right billionaire saw his approval rating fall to 31 percent in a poll last week while he grappled with the student protests, the looming Codelco strike and a customer credit scandal at retailer La Polar, which has sparked criticism of government oversight.
Copper prices fell on Monday as concerns over Italy's sovereign debt curtailed risk appetite, but labor strikes in Chile and Indonesia highlighted supply constraints and lent support to prices.
Weather-related supply disruptions in Chile's copper-rich north, Codelco's labor tensions and a strike at Indonesia's Grasberg mine helped copper prices hit three-month highs last week.
Codelco, which produces about 1.7 million tonnes a year, or over 9 percent of the world's mined output, expects to lose about 4,900 tonnes from the strike.
The most recent national strike by Codelco workers, in 1993, lasted half an hour and had little effect on output.
This time around, union leaders want the walkout to show a level of strength not seen since a 1983 labor stoppage held to protest the bloody dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.
Riot police turned their water canons and canisters of tear gas on thousands of Chilean miners and their supporters who were marching in Santiago on Monday night (July 11) in support of striking workers at Codelco, the world's top copper miner.
Water canons and tear gas were used by police to disperse the protesters as clashes broke out when the march reached a central square in the Chilean capital.
Television footage showed police detaining at least two protesters.
The strike by Codelco workers on Monday is their first national strike in nearly two decades and the latest in a growing feud between workers and the government over the future of the world's top copper miner.
Union leaders fear that the ongoing restructuring of Codelco -- ordered by conservative President Sebastian Pinera -- could lead to benefit cuts, huge layoffs and the sale of world-class deposits that are key to the state's finances
The day-long work stoppage is not believed to be hurting Codelco's output target, but it raised the risk of more labor strife in Chile, the world's top copper producer, that could disrupt an already fragile supply pipeline.
Employees of Codelco's No. 1 mine, Chuquicamata in the country's arid north, were the first to halt work on Monday. They were followed by workers at the company's Tenet mine, where picketers blocked access roads to the underground deposit. Transportation routes were also blocked by workers at Codelco's Angina and Radom Tonic mines and the Ventages copper smelter.
Pinera had already been struggling with student demonstrations over state education funding.
The center-right billionaire saw his approval rating fall to 31 percent in a poll last week while he grappled with the student protests, the looming Codelco strike and a customer credit scandal at retailer La Polar, which has sparked criticism of government oversight.
Copper prices fell on Monday as concerns over Italy's sovereign debt curtailed risk appetite, but labor strikes in Chile and Indonesia highlighted supply constraints and lent support to prices.
Weather-related supply disruptions in Chile's copper-rich north, Codelco's labor tensions and a strike at Indonesia's Grasberg mine helped copper prices hit three-month highs last week.
Codelco, which produces about 1.7 million tonnes a year, or over 9 percent of the world's mined output, expects to lose about 4,900 tonnes from the strike.
The most recent national strike by Codelco workers, in 1993, lasted half an hour and had little effect on output.
This time around, union leaders want the walkout to show a level of strength not seen since a 1983 labor stoppage held to protest the bloody dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.
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