ETU Fighting for Workers — Not Crippling the Industry

BHP, Rio Tinto, industry lobby groups, and the federal opposition want you to believe that unionising the electrical trades workforce in the northwest will "cripple the industry" and threaten future investment. Let’s be clear: that’s absolute nonsense. It’s the same tired, scare campaign we’ve heard before, and it’s got nothing to do with the economic reality in the very profitable resource sector.

The truth is this; workers are voluntarily joining the ETU because they see the value in having a collective voice. When workers decide they want an enterprise agreement, we follow the lawful process through the independent umpire, the Fair Work Commission. This is not radical. It’s how workplace relations are meant to function in a democracy, and as prescribed in the Fair Work Act 2009.

We’ve seen this scare campaign playbook before. When workers at South32’s Worsley Alumina Refinery moved towards a Union negotiated collective enterprise agreement (EA) in 2020, the company warned of impending disaster. They claimed their business would become unviable, that jobs would be lost, and that the economy would suffer. But once the agreement was secured—after decades without one—the workforce was far better off financially and emotionally, and the refinery didn’t shut down. In fact, workers have never been happier.

In reference to BHP’s and Rio Tinto’s claims that higher wages for essential electrical trades will cripple their businesses:

BHP’s own numbers show that their production cost per tonne of iron ore this year is $28 AUD. Their profit per tonne (EBITDA) is a staggering $132 AUD. WA Iron Ore (WAIO) employs around 8,000 people, and automation has driven labour costs down to just 12% of total costs.

Rio Tinto’s figures tell a similar story. With record profits and a solid foundation of automation driving efficiencies, even if wages for essential trades increased, it would have minimal impact on their bottom line.

Focusing specifically on the 400 electrical and mechanical trades workers, even if we estimate an average gross salary of $180,000, their total wage cost is $72 million. Given BHP’s 287 million tonnes of production last year, the wage cost for these essential trades amounts to just 0.251 cents per tonne exported.

Now, BHP’s estimated EBITDA for this year—based on last year’s production—is a staggering $44.96 billion AUD. Even if we doubled these workers’ wages to $360,000 per year (which we are not proposing), it would impact BHP’s profit margin by just 0.19%, lowering their profit per tonne from $128.713 to $128.462.

Does that sound like an industry on the brink of collapse?

The reality is, BHP, Rio Tinto, the industry bodies and their political allies don’t want workers standing together, fighting collectively for fair wages. They want to maintain the status quo—where massive profits flow to executives and shareholders while workers are expected to accept whatever conditions they’re given via more easily exploitable individual contracts.

Furthermore, the return to the so called "bad old days" of the 1980s—when corporate Australia could operate without the current protections in place—is impossible. The industrial laws today are worlds, and decades apart from what was permissible in the 1980s. Workplace protections have evolved, and modern laws now ensure fair wages, safety, and representation for all workers. The idea that we could return to those outdated conditions is a fallacy designed to generate fear, not a legitimate argument.

The ETU is doing exactly what it should be—representing workers, fighting for fair pay, and holding these massive corporations accountable. If BHP, Rio Tinto and their backers are scared, it’s not because the industry is at economic risk—it’s because workers are waking up to their power as a collective.

Adam Woodage

ETU WA Secretary