- by Emily Muagututia
- The Guardian
- Issue #2201
An iron ore train loading at the Brockman 4 mine, Pilbara. Photo: Calistemon – wikimedia.org (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Less than a month after the historic first strike in the Pilbara in nearly three decades (see Guardian #2199, ‘Battle for the Pilbara’), BHP workers are set to dramatically escalate their industrial action. The initial eight-hour action on 16 July sent a powerful message, but the mining giant needs to understand that the workers won’t settle for scraps.
Union members from port operations, representing the Electrical Trades Union (ETU), the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), and the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU), unanimously voted to implement a 24-hour ban on ship loading on Saturday, 8 August, followed by a full 24-hour walkout on Sunday, 9 August.
The high-voltage electricians maintaining BHP’s power network, who are negotiating a separate agreement, will also join the fight with a 12-hour stoppage on Sunday, demonstrating growing unity among the workforce.
This is a bold escalation from the first strike, which saw up to 200 workers down tools to demand a fair share of the profits their labour generates. The workers have had enough of the company’s stalling tactics.
This action has been spurred by the glacial pace of negotiations. Despite a recent meeting facilitated by the Fair Work Commission (FWC), where BHP claimed “significant progress” had been made, the unions have confirmed the strike is going ahead. The company has committed to tabling an “updated proposal” at a meeting scheduled for 18 August, but workers are not holding their breath.
A key sticking point is BHP’s desire to maintain an individualised approach to pay and conditions through employment contracts rather than locking in a fair enterprise agreement that guarantees enforceable wages. The unions are demanding a just deal that reflects the immense value these workers create.
BHP’s offer of a 16% pay increase over four years, while framed as “generous,” comes from a company bragging about record production and profits while paying its CEO a multi-million-dollar salary.
The workers at BHP are not just fighting for themselves. They are fighting for the principle that the wealth made by the workers belongs to the working class, and they continue to stand tall against BHP, the resource industry lobby, and their media cronies.
This fresh strike is a crucial step in rebuilding working-class solidarity and union power in Western Australia. The ruling class is terrified of this resurgence, and they should be. As union leaders have made clear, they are “not going to entertain what the company is pushing.”
The fight continues.
