A work stoppage Friday by longshoremen at the port of Antofagasta in northern Chile has spread to four nearby ports.
The strike for better pay, now in its second week in Antofagasta, has idled some 40,000 tons of Chilean copper on the docks, among other shipments, and longshoremen in the ports of Arica, Iquique, Tocopilla and Coquimbo joined the strike for eight hours in a sign of solidarity.
Talks between casual longshoremen and private operators in Antofagasta collapsed earlier this week after workers rejected a proposed wage hike. Longshoremen demanded a 25% hike in their daily rates, while shippers countered with a 20% increase as their last offer.
“A more substantial increase would be impossible, and we think that no company would offer it,” said Carlos Rivera, project coordinator at the Chilean shippers’ council in Valparaiso.
An earlier strike in Iquique lasted for over a month before longshoremen gave in.
