Rio Tinto Locks Out 540 Workers in California:

[amborin]

January 31, 2010

The giant Rio Tinto Borax mine in Boron locked out about 540 hourly workers Sunday after the employee union refused to ratify a new labor contract.

The lockout began at 7 a.m. as miners showed up outside the gates and were told they couldn't come in. Replacements were brought in to do their jobs.

"It's obviously a drastic measure and I am well aware of the fact that this has very real consequences to our employees. It's not a bully tactic, but it's our only real alternative," said Dean Gehring, general manager of the mine.

"We cannot continue operating with this threat of a strike hanging over our head," he said. "I pray this will go fast, but I'm preparing for it to go long."

The Boron operation is the largest open-pit mine in California and the second largest borax mine on Earth. The Kern County community and the mine have been closely tied for generations, but increasing labor tensions have threatened to sever those bonds.

Many residents work at the mine and fear a strike or extended lockout could cripple the city of 2,000.

"I think it will be pretty traumatic," said Jim Freeman, 54, who has worked at the mine for 31 years. "I think the company had the impression we were going to roll over and let them feed us the poison."

Rio Tinto, a London-based mining giant with operations on five continents, has been negotiating with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 30, which represents the employees, since September. The company says it has lost 25% of its global borax share and needs to make changes to stay competitive.

It has offered the union a 2% wage increase, an annual performance bonus, a $4,000 signing bonus and 80% coverage of healthcare costs. In return, Rio wants to hire more nonunion employees and, more importantly, change the seniority system so that it can promote people based on skill and performance rather than just years of service. The company threatened a lockout if there was no deal by Sunday.

"We are asking for a lot of changes and we know that," Gehring said. "Some employees think the flexibility we are looking for will take away seniority."

He added that running the business with a contingency workforce means the company will not be negotiating "any time in the near future."

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-boron1-2010feb01,0,362036.story?track=rss

Press Release : Rio Tinto Litigation Plaintiffs Celebrate as Rio Tinto Loses Important Battle in Human Rights Case

August 03, 2009

SEATTLE - The United States Federal Court again rejected arguments from Rio Tinto (NYSE:RTP) late last week, in a massive human rights claim brought by South Pacific islanders claiming the world's largest mining company conspired with the government of Papua New Guinea (PNG) in crimes against humanity, racial discrimination and war crimes.

In the most recent ruling, Judge Margaret M. Morrow held that the heinous nature of the allegations led to the court's conclusion not to impose an "exhaustion requirement" with respect to the claims.

An exhaustion requirement would require the Court to explore the possibility of dismissing the case in the United States, leaving plaintiffs to start the legal process all over again in Papua New Guinea.

"Rio Tinto has tried every possible stalling tactic to prolong the case," said Steve Berman, lead attorney and managing partner at Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro. "Now that the court has rejected Rio's arguments again, we're eager to move this case forward so that the people of PNG can receive the justice they deserve."

snip

http://www.hagens-berman.com/riotinto_ruling

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/37553/story.htm

China Says $100 Billion Was Bilked by Rio Tinto

By DAVID BARBOZA

Published: August 9, 2009

SHANGHAI — China said Sunday that it had evidence showing that for at least six years, employees working for the British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto engaged in commercial espionage, costing the country about $100 billion.

The sensational allegation was published on a Web site affiliated with China’s State Secrets Bureau, which detained four Rio Tinto employees — three Chinese citizens and one Australian — in Shanghai last month on suspicions of stealing confidential documents from the country’s huge, government-controlled steel industry. The comments were the first time that China had suggested that the case involved a long-running conspiracy.

China said computer data had revealed that Rio engaged in extensive spying on the industry, allowing it and other suppliers to vastly overcharge China for iron ore, a central ingredient in steel.

The case has strained China’s relations with Australia and rocked China’s steel industry, which purchases billions of dollars worth of iron ore every year from Rio Tinto and other global mining companies.

The detentions have also thrown China’s annual negotiations with the world’s biggest iron ore producers into chaos at a time when demand for iron ore and steel is soaring in China because of an economic recovery

snip

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/10/business/global/10riotinto.html?_r=1&scp=7&sq=rio%20tinto&st=cse

[leftstreet]

1. K&R

[Starry Messenger]

2. k & r

[amborin]

3. kicking for the workers

[asdjrocky]

4. In solidarity.