After the meetings between labor unions and Australian miner BHP Billiton on June 20, it was announced that there will be further strikes at coking coal mines in Queensland, Australia. These strikes could result in increased prices since the miners will have to reduce their production.
Three labor unions representing more than 3,000 workers announced that they will carry on with strikes during the night shifts on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at six mines in Queensland state. The mines are jointly owned by BHP and Japan's Mitsubishi Corp.
While six mines had a six-hour strike over three days last week, a seventh mine, Broadmeadow, came to an employment agreement in mid-May.
Samantha Stevens, a spokeswoman for BHP stated that it is very disappointing that the unions decided for further strikes while the company was negotiating in good faith. She added that the talks will continue during July.