Electricians at BHP’s key Australian iron-ore hub vote for work stoppages

Electricians maintaining diversified miner BHP’s high-voltage power network in Western Australia’s Pilbara region have overwhelmingly backed strike action, the Electrical Trades Union (ETU) said on Friday, escalating labour unrest less than a day after hundreds of workers at the miner’s Port Hedland iron-ore operations walked off the job. The union said 97.5% of the electricians voted in favour of work stoppages ranging from 30 minutes to 24 hours.