Workers at BHP’s Port Hedland Bulk Export Terminal will officially down tools on Thursday after mediation talks failed to reach a compromise between the company and a coalition of unions.
It will be the first time this century that union workers have agreed to take strike action in WA’s Pilbara region.
The move by the Combined Ports Unions, made up of members from the Electrical Trade Union, the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union and the Western Mine Workers Alliance, will see members stop work for an eight-hour period on Thursday.
A Combined Port Unions spokesperson said workers at BHP and their elected representatives conducted a five-hour bargaining session with the participation of the Fair Work Commission.
“No agreement was reached, and a further session with the participation of the Commission has been scheduled for Tuesday 21 July,” the spokesperson said.
“It is the intention of workers and their representatives to proceed with protected industrial action notified for Thursday 16 July.”
A BHP spokesperson said the company had contingency plans in place to ensure operations continue.
“In light of the positive progress made today under the guidance of the independent Fair Workplace Commission, and their offer to provide ongoing support to the parties, it is disappointing the unions have decided to proceed with their planned industrial action on Thursday,” the spokesperson said.
“We appreciate the Commission acting quickly to enable discussions to continue.
“We remain committed to bargaining in good faith and believe involving the Commission is the most constructive, transparent and fair way to achieve the best outcome.
“As with all potential disruptions to our business, we have plans in place to ensure operations can safely continue.”
Port Hedland ships about $150 million of iron ore a day, with academics estimating BHP accounts for about $120 million of that.
Union supporters have previously cited pay rates at a Perth desalination plant of up to $240,000 as a benchmark for what staff in Port Hedland, about 1600 kilometres north, should receive.
ETU WA secretary Adam Woodage previously said he expected the action to cost the mining giant between $40 and $50 million, depending on the productivity levels at the port during the strike.
Since the start of this century, the Pilbara’s workforce has been largely union-free.
Hamersley Iron led the charge in the early 1990s. It battled its workers at the fabled Tom Price mine, rolling out individual contracts in a bid to boost productivity.
However, unions and the BHP started negotiating their first agreement in more than a decade in WA’s Pilbara iron ore mines in 2024, using a window opened by changes to industrial laws by the Albanese Labor government.
On Tuesday, WA Nationals leader Shane Love said the resources sector was the engine room of the state’s economy, and any disruption to iron ore exports from Port Hedland would have serious consequences for regional jobs, state revenue and Australia’s economic prosperity.
“The last thing Western Australia needs is a return to the industrial conflict that characterised parts of the Pilbara decades ago,” he said.
More to come.
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