Premier Coal workers in Australia may go on strike
Workers at the Premier Coal mine near Collie in Western Australia may begin a strike after final negotiations between unions and company management ended without result. The mine is the main coal supplier for the Muja and Collie power stations of state-owned energy company Synergy, located about 200 kilometres south of Perth.
As ABC News Australia reports, workers are demanding higher pay and clarity on payments in the event of redundancies. The negotiations concern their final enterprise bargaining agreement, as Western Australia's state coal-fired power stations are scheduled to close by 2030.
Strike discussions
Steve McCartney, state secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, said Wednesday's negotiations did not result in an agreement. According to him, workers will discuss possible dates and the duration of a work stoppage over the next two days. There is support among workers for stoppages lasting more than 12 hours.
More than 90% of Premier Coal's workforce are union members. A majority of members of the Mining and Energy Union and the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union supported strike action in a recent vote.
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Coal stocks and compensation
The Western Australian government said a possible strike would not affect electricity supply because Synergy has already built up coal stockpiles. At the same time, McCartney warned that prolonged industrial action could cause disruptions to the power grid.
One of the key points of dispute is protection against future reductions in payments to workers in the event of redundancies. Greg Busson, state secretary of the Mining and Energy Union, said workers are increasingly concerned about the approaching year 2030 and want to understand what the company's final years of operation will look like.
In April, Premier Coal announced the loss of between 70 and 100 jobs at the mine near Collie, explaining this by declining demand for coal used in electricity generation. The company is owned by Yancoal Australia, which is controlled by the Chinese state-owned mining group Yankuang Energy Group. A spokesperson for the Cook government said the authorities had allocated more than A$700 million to support the transition of the Collie region, including A$3.2 million for Premier Coal workers and contractors affected by the recent shutdown.
