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Asarco Copper Workers May Strike Waiting For Final Contract

Arizona copper workers may strike soon, awaiting a final contract offer on pay and benefits.

According to reporting by the Arizona Daily Star, employees of Tucson-based copper producer Asarco may vote to strike this week after working without a new contract since last November. Contracts detailing pay and benefits cover more than 2,000 hourly workers at five locations in Arizona and Texas.

Mexico-based Grupo Mexico owns Asarco. Its three largest locations are in Arizona: the Mission Mine in Sahuarita, the Silver Bell Mine in Marana, and the Ray Mine and Hayden smelter in central Arizona.

After subsequent contracts covering Asarco workers in Arizona and Texas expired, the unions agreed to a 14-month contract in September 2017.

Asarco filed for bankruptcy protection in 2005 amid a strike and more than $1 billion of asbestos and environmental claims.

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Heather van Blokland was a host at KJZZ from 2016 to 2021.