VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – The United Steelworkers Union (USW) Local 5795/6731, in Labrador City, rejected the latest labour offer proposed by Rio Tinto’s majority-owned Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) and the USW negotiations teams.
The union represents about 1 400 workers of whom 90% voted in favour of downing tools from March 27 onwards, with other groups joining the picket lines later.
Minority stakeholder Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corp (LIORC), which has a 15% stake in the mine operation, said the ongoing strike at IOC is expected to adversely affect its revenue, as its income is entirely dependent on IOC's sale of iron-ore products.
The parties are at loggerheads over a proposed two-tiered pension system that would see new employees receive one-third the value of the current pension plan and company demands that workers make up for time lost to illness by not receiving extra pay for overtime.
IOC operates a mine, concentrator and a pelletising plant in Labrador City, in Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as port facilities in Sept-Îles, in Quebec. It also operates a 418 km railroad that links the mine to the port.
IOC currently employs more than 2 500 employees. In 2017, total concentrate output reached 20.2-million tonnes – 5% higher over 2016’s 19.2-million tonnes – but below the 22-million tonnes target for 2017.
Rio Tinto holds a 59% stake in IOC, with Mitsubishi Corp holding 26%.
LIORC’s TSX-listed stock fell more than 7% on Wednesday to C$22.02 apiece, building on the stock’s 18.9% downward momentum since the start of the year.