Shougang Peru on strike

Those upstart worker people want more money? How dare they! In our day we 'ad to walk 6 miles t'd pit, work 18 hours a day AND pay the owner for permission to come to work, bah gum.

Here's Reuters (translated):

August 31st 09:51am
Production at the mining company Shougang Hierro Perú (Shougang Iron Peru) is currently stopped this Wednesday due to an indefinite strike by its workforce, according to general manager, Raúl Vera.
Shougang Hierro Perú. controlled by the Shougang Group of China, is the only producer of iron ore in the country and has its mine in the southern Ica region.
"The company is not producing in light that the workers have down tools...we are waiting for word from the ministry of labour for a meeting", said Vera in a telephone conversation with Reuters.
Workers have gone on strike to demand better pay and working conditions, a union leader told Reuters.

UPDATE: Next time I won't bother translating, as ten minutes later here's an EngLang Reuters note on the story.

Peru, and a point to the working classes

The Shougang strike is over as of yesterday. Workers at its Marcona iron ore works on the South coast of Peru (specific hole in ground pictured above) had been protesting in a unanimous form since Monday 13th July, so it took 10 days for the Chinese owners to realize they can't treat people outside China they way they treat their own nationals.

Workers wanted a S/10 per day (approx U$3.30) pay rise and Shougang offered them a raise of S/0.70 (about U$0.25) per day. The workforce quite correctly took that as the insult it sounds like, downed tools and didn't cave in under pressure. Here's the final deal:

• A S/3.30 per day rise (approx U$1.10)

• A one-time bonus payment of S/1,300 (approx U$434)

• Meals supplied by the company for workers on duty

• Transport paid for (or partly paid for) by the company.

All in all, I think the Shougang workforce got themselves a good deal. Come the revolution, conmrades......