Workers at BHP Group's Port Hedland iron ore operations in Western Australia plan to go on strike next week, unions said on Friday, threatening to disrupt the miner's $80 million of daily exports through the world's largest iron ore port.
BHP, the world's third-largest iron ore producer, still has time to avert the action if it can reach a deal at the next meeting, on Tuesday, union officials said at a press conference in Melbourne. The unions most recently met with BHP on July 28.
Workers plan to impose a 24-hour ban on loading ships on Saturday, August 8, followed by a 24-hour work stoppage at the Port Hedland Bulk Export Terminal beginning at 05:30 AWST on August 9 (21:30 GMT August 8), said the Combined BHP Ports Unions in a statement.
Electrical Trades Union spokesperson Adam Woodage said 16 shipments were expected to be held up over the two days. Around 150 workers are expected to take part in the strike, he told reporters in Melbourne.
BHP said it was focussed on reaching a fair deal with the unions, adding it had offered the unions a 16 per cent pay raise. "It is disappointing that they are creating more disruptions," BHP said in an emailed statement.
"As with all potential disruptions to our business, we have plans in place to ensure operations can safely continue.”
Port Hedland, which is also used by miners Fortescue and Hancock Prospecting, shipped out 571.6 million tonnes of iron ore in the year to June 2026, accounting for 75 per cent of total iron ore exports from the Pilbara over that period.
The threatened strike put a floor under sliding iron ore prices, which hit a one-year low on Thursday.
The stoppages threatened for August 8 to 9 would affect around 800,000 tonnes a day of iron ore shipments, which BHP should be able to make up for across the year, said analyst Glyn Lawcock of Barrenjoey in Sydney.
"One swallow doesn’t make a spring. But if this is the tip of the iceberg and we see continued and ongoing disruption, it will ultimately take a toll on the market," he said.
The Combined BHP Ports Unions represents three unions, including the Western Mine Workers Alliance, as well as electrical and manufacturing workers.
High-voltage and power workers negotiating a separate enterprise agreement with BHP will also undertake a 12-hour stoppage on August 9.
Unions are pushing for a bigger voice in Australia's mining heartland, emboldened by a Labour government law in 2022 giving them the power to negotiate wage deals that cover several employers and more scope to request flexible arrangements and industry-wide strikes.
Top global miner BHP has been in negotiations for more than seven months with unions representing around 450 operators and maintenance workers over a four-year enterprise agreement.
The unions said workers were seeking enforceable wage and condition protections through a new enterprise agreement.
Workers are arguing that extreme heat, long hours and time away from family meant they should not be facing lower rates than workers in cities.
"The only reason you end up with some money in your pocket is because you're working every weekend, You're still going to get your double time but you're working four weeks straight for it," said electrical trades worker Ben McKenna.
Fortescue Metals CEO Dino Otranto said on Friday in an analyst call that Australia's No. three miner was, "not immune," from strikes, but that it hoped its culture would prevail.
Earlier this month, BHP reported record annual iron ore output.
(Reporting by Melanie Burton in Melbourne and Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Sonali Paul)