Codelco workers blockade Ministro Hales over bonuses

Workers at Codelco's Ministro Hales copper mine in northern Chile blockaded the division's gates for about six hours on Monday in a dispute over bonuses withheld after a December 2025 haul truck fire, Mining.com reported.

Why it matters: The stoppage was brief, but the copper workers' federation warned protests could spread to Codelco's Chuquicamata, Radomiro Tomic and Gabriela Mistral operations, which would put a larger share of Chilean copper output at risk.

Data as of Mining.com, October 27, 2026, read in full in this run via the live browser after the direct fetch was refused. Single source, evidence grade C: the blockade, its duration and the spread warning rest on Mining.com's reporting of Cooperativa radio remarks by the Federation of Copper Workers, and no Codelco statement was available in this run. Developing item.

Workers at Codelco’s Ministro Hales division near Calama occupied the mine’s gates from 6 a.m. on Monday, bringing production and vehicle movements to a standstill for about six hours, Mining.com reported. The dispute is over bonuses the union says were withheld after a haul truck caught fire in December 2025, seriously burning its operator and taking 13 trucks out of service for several days; the union argues workers are being made to bear the cost of the company’s safety failures.

Alberto Muñoz of the Federation of Copper Workers warned the protests could spread to Codelco’s Chuquicamata, Radomiro Tomic and Gabriela Mistral mines unless senior management addresses the concerns. The blockade itself has ended, and no production loss figure has been published.

Codelco workers blockade Ministro Hales over bonuses

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