Chile workers end strike at world's largest copper producer / Photo: Javier Torres - AFP
-
KUFOS Signs MoU With Old Dominion University to Expand Academic Ties
-
$1.8 Billion Pledged for Biodiversity at COP17 as Monaco Reaffirms Commitment
-
Karen Wazen Launches First Standalone Boutiques in Cairo
-
Phoenix Symphony Resumes Performances Amid Financial Uncertainty
-
Municipal Elections: How Service Failure Becomes a Public Health Crisis in South Africa
-
Turkish Energy Minister Highlights Qatar as Key Partner for Regional and Global Energy Security
-
Rene Eyre Revisits Autobiographical Performance 'Say A Little Prayer' in London
-
London Museum Granted 24/7 License Ahead of November Opening
-
UAE's HCT Holds Record Graduation and Announces Major Training Expansion
-
Dana White Confirms Flight to Washington for Trump Meeting on Press Secretary Role
-
NASA Awards $10B Lunar Contract Framework to SpaceX, Blue Origin
-
Dengue Fever Expands Into High Himalayas as Climate Change Warms Nepal
-
Katy Perry Tells Fans Ex-Husband Russell Brand 'Should Be in Jail' During UK Concert
Chile workers end strike at world's largest copper producer
Workers at Chile's state mining company Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, called off an open-ended strike Thursday after reaching agreement with the government.
The strike by some 40,000 mine workers to protest the closure of a foundry in one of Chile's most polluted regions, was ended after one day, the FTC labor federation announced.
The FTC had agreed with the company to work jointly towards closing the Ventanas foundry, over a period of time, in an area dubbed "Chile's Chernobyl."
Codelco announced it would close the Ventanas foundry after an incident on June 9 when 115 people, mostly school children, suffered sulfur dioxide poisoning released by heavy industry in the area around Quintero and Puchuncavi, home to some 50,000 people.
It was the second such incident in just three days.
Greenpeace described the area around the Ventanas plant as "Chile's Chernobyl" following a serious incident in 2018 when around 600 people received medical treatment for symptoms such as vomiting blood, headaches, dizziness and paralysis of the extremities.
Unions, however, described the announced closure as "arbitrary" and demanded the government spend money instead on bringing the plant up to environmental standards.
Pollution accumulated in the area of Quintero and Puchuncavi after the government decided in 1958 to convert it into an industrial center that now hosts four coal-fired power stations and oil and copper refineries.
J.V.Jacinto--PC
