Noranda (NRD-T) said late on Thursday that 510 unionized workers at its Horne copper smelter in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, have voted 73 % to reject the company’s final contract offer.
Noranda’s offer included salary and pension increases of 9.6% and 12.5%, respectively over the life of the three-year agreement. It also included improvements to the benefits program and special early-retirement programs.
Earlier in the week, Noranda issued a letter stating that the offer was final citing harsh business conditions.
Horne’s general manager Mario Chapados said in a prepared statement, “We are disappointed with the outcome of the vote. We believe that the final offer was a fair one and provided both the employees and the company with substantial gains.”
The two sides just recently got back to the negotiating table, with talks resuming on Oct. 28 in Montreal. They last met in June.
In mid-June, Horne’s unionized employees walked off the job after their complaints about sub-contracting went unheard. Three days later, Noranda declared force majeure (subsequently lifted. Noranda says that a crew of 120 non-union staff and managers is currently running the smelter at more than 70% capacity.
Horne has the capacity to produce 220,000 tonnes of copper anode per year. In 2001, the smelter produced 188,000 tonnes.
The previous collective agreement at Horne expired on Feb. 28.
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