Chilean strike spreads from Copper to Lithium: the latest Labor dispute "burns" to the World's largest Lithium producer

The strike that has swept through Chile's mining industry is now spreading from copper mining to lithium production-union members at a Chilean brine processing company owned by (Albemarle Corp.), the world's largest lithium producer, have been on strike since Wednesday.

Albemarle has two lithium production sites in northern Chile: the Salar plant in the Atacama Desert and the La Negra plant near (Antofagasta) in Antofagasta. In total, the two factories employ more than 700 people, according to the company's website.

It is reported that the strike is the Salar union of 135 employees, they failed to reach a wage agreement in the collective bargaining between employers and employees.

In a letter, union leaders accused the company of boycotting the union and said they were pushing for better working conditions and wage equality. For its part, the company said it regretted the union's decision and was still confident of reaching an agreement because there was no dispute in the labor agreement negotiations with the other three unions.

At a meeting on July 30th, workers of the Salar union voted to go on strike. As part of the collective bargaining process, the, Albemarle Salar factory applied to the Chilean Ministry of Labour for compulsory mediation on 3 August, but unfortunately the two sides were still unable to reach a compromise during this period.

The union points out that in the nearly two years since the outbreak, the lithium mining company has laid off many union members and workers from indigenous communities. In spite of this, the workers achieved their production targets without a pay rise and brought considerable profits to the company. They hope to reach a collective agreement that is beneficial to both parties, based on the principle of respecting their rights and not discriminating against or restricting freedom of association.

Chile is the second largest lithium exporter. Albemarle said it currently has emergency measures to continue production operations, although this will largely depend on the duration of the strike.

Lithium is now widely used in the production of rechargeable batteries. The Salar plant in the Atacama Desert belongs to the salt lake lithium mine, which extracts lithium from salt lake brine. The latest strike by lithium miners comes at a time when global lithium supplies are tight, and lithium prices have continued to soar recently.

It also further increases the risk of strike in Chile's vast copper industry, where three copper mines are now under threat of strike-union members at a Chilean copper mine owned by JX Nippon Mining & Metals have gone on strike this week, while workers at (Codelco) 's Andina copper mine are scheduled to strike on Thursday. This is bound to have a negative impact on labour negotiations at Escondida, the world's largest copper mine owned by BHP, which is in the final mediation period before the strike.

The huge profits made by the metal mining giants against the backdrop of soaring commodity prices this year have encouraged Chilean workers to seek more benefits for themselves. At the same time, as input costs begin to rise, some companies are trying to control labour costs in cyclical businesses.

Chile is also considering raising mining taxes to help address inequality exacerbated by the epidemic. The country is likely to legislate stricter rules on water, glaciers, minerals and community rights, and presidential elections will be held in November.