Strike at BHP’s Cerro Matoso Nickel Mine Now Over

Reuters reported that a two-week strike at BHP Billiton Ltd.’s (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BLT) Colombia-based Cerro Matoso nickel mine has come to an end. The strike forced the major miner to declare force majeure last week.

As quoted in the market news:

Unionized workers had been blocking access to the ferronickel mine and refinery since April 14 in protest at a change to longer shifts they say will increase uninterrupted exposure to toxic substances and damage their health.

The company said in a statement that it will now suspend that decision except for non-mining workers, but it would still seek to implement it within 30 days with monitoring and advice on potential health issues from the Labor Ministry.

“Once operations are normalized and in a more complex financial scenario, the company will resume its productivity drive begun in 2014, continuing with measures to lower costs,” the statement said.

Union leader Domingo Hernandez confirmed the agreement and said operations would be back to normal from 11 p.m. on Friday (0400 GMT Saturday) when a shift that starts at that time would resume.

 Click here to read the full Reuters report.