Minera Spence, owned by Australia's BHP, sued its Workers' Union No. 1 in the Antofagasta Civil Court. It is seeking $8,450 million for losses it attributes to two work stoppages that the company says were "outright illegal".
According to BioBioChile, the stoppages took place between June 30 and July 1, and then between July 7 and 8 this year. La Tercera and Diario Financiero reported the same dates. Both outlets added that those dates coincided with the close of BHP's fiscal year, when production bonuses were being calculated.
The dispute began in May. The union requested compensation for the decline in production bonuses for fiscal year 2026 and for the mining company's results. In a May 29 letter cited in the lawsuit, the workers called it a "request for a share of the profit we helped generate".
The lawsuit maintains that the union sought an extraordinary bonus of $5 million per worker. That payment is not included in the current collective agreement. Diario Financiero reported the company's account: union members had not met production targets and therefore were not entitled to the corresponding bonuses.
On June 30, Spence responded that it would maintain the terms of the agreement. According to the mining company, after that response the union called on its members not to report for their shifts. La Tercera reported that the company spoke with union leaders and, on July 1, asked them by letter to end the stoppage. The second stoppage came a week later.
The figures in the lawsuit show the impact on operations. During the first stoppage, 413 workers were absent, and during the second, 350. Notarial records documented unstaffed areas and idle machinery. During one of the days, only 3 of the operation's 34 trucks were running.
The company calculates that cathode production (the sheets of nearly pure copper ready for sale) was halted for 23 hours. Production of concentrate, which is ore that has been ground and enriched before smelting, stopped for 26 hours. In total, Spence estimates that it lost production of 567 metric tons of fine copper and two of molybdenum, valued at US$8.58 million.
That figure includes only lost profits, meaning what the company failed to earn. The mining company excluded contingency expenses, such as overtime, transportation and staff accommodation.
Spence's legal argument is that the stoppages did not comply with the Labor Code. In Chile, a legal strike takes place within a regulated collective bargaining process, with a vote and prior notice to the company and the Labor Inspectorate. The mining company says none of that happened. Nor was Article 184 bis invoked, which allows workers to stop working when there is a serious and imminent risk to life or health.
According to the same lawsuit, the union responded that the stoppages resulted from "more than a year of proposals, meetings and requests" without timely responses. It also invoked trade union autonomy. The sources do not include direct statements from union leaders beyond those cited in the legal action.
The lawsuit targets the organization rather than individual workers. The union represents 1,082 people, 96% of the workforce in its employee category. In a statement, Spence said it "cannot condone work stoppages that take place outside the applicable legal framework". The Antofagasta Civil Court must now process the case. The sources do not report any hearing dates.