Workers at BHP's Port Hedland operations will down tools for eight hours as part of the first union-backed action in the Pilbara for more than 30 years.
Workers at BHP's Port Hedland operations will down tools for eight hours as part of the first union-backed action in the Pilbara for more than 30 years.
The stoppage will take place between 2pm and 10pm on July 16, after the Electrical Trades Union, the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and the Western Mine Alliance gave the required five-day notice period under the Fair Work Act.
BHP had previously estimated a 24-hour stoppage would cost the company up to $120 million.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, AMWU WA secretary Steve McCartney said BHP had spent six months dragging out negotiations.
"Our members have been talking to this company for seven months without them moving an inch. They're treating them with the same contempt they've been treating their workforce with for the last 10 years, and they're sick of it, and what they're saying to us is, 'How do we get them moving'," he said.
"These are people that work in harsh conditions, away from their family, and they deserve to be rewarded."
ETU WA secretary Adam Woodage said around one in five of the 200-odd workers who would walk off the job on July 16 were fly-in fly-out, while the remaining 80 per cent were residents of Port Hedland.
Speaking at a press conference shortly after the unions' appearance, Chamber of Minerals and Energy chief executive Aaron Morey said the strike action was preordained.
CME WA chief executive Aaron Morey. Photo: Michael O'Brien.
"This was part of their plans all along to generate as much conflict and dispute as possible," he said.
"Look, we built the Pilbara through people working together, not through people looking to pick a fight, and that's what we have here.
"It's going to hurt workers in the long run, and so we call on unions to take a constructive approach to negotiations, so that we can get this resolved as quickly as possible."
The action comes after 58 per cent of workers at BHP's South Flank and Mining Area C operations voted to approve a new four-year enterprise agreement.
That agreement locked in a 16 per cent pay rise spread across four years, and increased site-based work allowances.
It also added a new compensation scheme for delayed fly-in, fly-out flights.
Mr McCartney said that deal was "undercooked".
"16 per cent over four years is not enough. I'm not going to get locked into the percentage that our members want, but what I will tell you is that they do want more than that," he said.
He said the deal was approved because workers, who had not had a chance to negotiate a new deal in years, "got nervous and jumped quick".
Mr Woodage called the South Flank agreement a baseline.
"It is no better than the award. It does not have enforceable rights for the workers there. It does not ensure that we can bring on a same job, same pay application, which BHP are notorious for fighting over in the East Coast," he said.
"We do not need a minimum rates agreement for Port Hedland. We want a real agreement that reflects real terms and conditions.
"We're not going to accept anything less, and that's what we're after."
Asked whether, if BHP did not come to the table to negotiate after the planned action, there was potential for further strikes, Mr McCartney said that would be considered.
"One thing about being a unionist is you get to pick your action, so we'll go back to our members and say, if they're not negotiating in good faith, what do you want to do now," he said.
"And they got the right to take their action, and they will take it."
BHP spokesperson said its intention was to find ways to lock in industry-leading pay and conditions while preserving operational flexibility.
“We have delivered a new enterprise agreement at Mining Area C and South Flank that rewards 1800 workers -- without industrial action," a BHP spokesperson said today.
“Our focus remains on keeping our people safe, maintaining productive operations and reaching a fair, competitive and reasonable agreement with our people.
“Every Australian benefits from a strong iron ore sector. We are eager to keep negotiating constructively for a fair deal, while making sure we can keep operations running safely.”
Mr Morey said suggesting the South Flank deal was not enough was "a union insulting workers".
"These workers are smart enough, have a strong enough relationship with their employer to identify what's a fair, reasonable, and sustainable negotiation to ensure that those operations continue," he said.
"We've seen those workers reject the union conflict, their model of disruption, which can only send the sector and our economy backwards."
Asked whether the 42 per cent who voted against the deal was evidence that some agreed with the unions, Mr Morey said the model of cooperation in the Pilbara was at risk by unions.
"Look, what we've seen is a majority of workers support a set of wages and conditions that they're happy that they're happy to vote for, and I think it's insulting to the workers to suggest that they don't know how to represent their interests," he said.
"What we've seen over decades in the Pilbara is a model of cooperation between workers and companies that has delivered the highest wages in the country. That model is now at risk."
