Unionised workers at Australian mining firm BHP's Port Hedland iron ore export operations will strike on 8-9 August if the company and employees fail to reach an enterprise agreement (EA) at their next bargaining meeting on 4 August.
The strike will start with a 24-hour ban on ship-loading from 05:30 AWST on 8 August (21:30 GMT, 7 August), followed by a 24-hour work stoppage from 05:30 AWST on 9 August (21:30 GMT, 8 August), the Electrical Trades Union (ETU) said on 31 July. About 150 workers plan to join the action over the weekend, it said.
The combined port unions — the ETU, Australian Workers Union and Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union — will next meet BHP on 4 August to discuss wages and working conditions. The strike at the port in Western Australia's (WA) Pilbara region will proceed if the dispute is not resolved at the talks, the ETU said.
The Chamber of Minerals and Energy (CME) WA estimates that a 24-hour stoppage at Port Hedland would cost BHP A$120mn ($83mn) in export revenue. CME WA chief executive Adam Morey described the Port Hedland strike action as "uncharted territory" on 31 July, noting that there had been little industrial action in the Pilbara region over the past three decades.
BHP has been negotiating a new EA with its Port Hedland maritime workforce since October 2025, which will cover around 450 employees, excluding contractors. Up to 236 of these workers are eligible to strike, Fair Work Commission (FWC) records show. Port Hedland has a total workforce of around 1,200 workers, BHP said.
Port Hedland workers last held industrial action on 16 July, but this did not prevent a loaded vessel from leaving the port early on 17 July, BHP said. Around 63 workers participated in the strike, the firm said.
Port Hedland is the world's largest bulk iron ore export port and a key export hub in BHP's WA iron ore supply chain. BHP produced 256.9mn t of iron ore from its WA operations in the July 2025-June 2026 fiscal year. All of BHP's WA iron ore is exported through Port Hedland.
