State of the negotiations at EscondidaUnion says BHP, Escondida mine workers 'far from agreement' Jul. 6, 2018 8:52 AM ET|About: BHP Billiton Limited (BHP)|By: Carl Surran, SA News Editor Negotiations between BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP) and workers at the Escondida copper mine in Chile, the world's largest, are "far from reaching agreement" with less than three weeks to go before a potential strike, a union official tells Reuters. The official says BHP is displaying the same stubbornness that last year led to a 44-day strike that jolted the global copper market. Copper prices have dropped for nine straight days amid worries over a U.S.-China trade war, but the union says the depressed price will not weaken its demands, describing the decline as purely transitory. The union is seeking a 4% share of the mines profits, through a 5% increase in salaries and a bonus of 22M-24M pesos ($33.5K-$36K) per worker.