First Quantum, union reach deals on salaries as protests block mine access

Reuters | November 16, 2023 | 4:15 pm Top Companies Mexico and Central America Copper 
First Quantum halts copper processing in Panama as dispute spirals
Cobre Panama mine is First Quantum Minerals’ largest copper operation. (Image courtesy of Cobre Panama.)

The union for Canadian miner First Quantum’s unit in Panama said on Thursday that it reached an agreement with the company to guarantee salaries as protests and blockades against the miner prevent them from working.

Protests have raged for weeks against First Quantum’s contract for a $10 billion copper mine, with some protests blocking access to the mine.

The blockades “put at risk the daily bread of some 7,000 workers who are also Panamanians who have not been able to return to our posts to make a living in a dignified way,” the union said in a statement.

“We have signed agreements with the company to guarantee salary for the workers,” the statement added.

First Quantum’s local unit, Minera Panama, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

(By Valentine Hilaire and Brendan O’Boyle; Editing by Isabel Woodford)

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