The union is making its demands right now (Sp.) and the final outcome is not clear. The union is demanding that the government accept responsibility for paying the miners, as apparently they no longer consider the company a reliable creditor. They then want the government to try to recover the funds from the company. So far the government is strongly resisting this suggestion. Another account of the dispute is here.
Update: So far it seems that corporate payment of wages will continue through August but after that is uncertain.
Overtime?
It’s been suggested that the miners could continue prospecting to keep themselves occupied (they have kilometers of tunnels at their disposal). Do they get paid for what they find?
I have been really suspicious of the Chilean miner story ever since I found out David Blaine was with them.
>apparently they no longer consider the company a reliable creditor
Well, yeah. Their mine caved in. That kind of hurts their business operations.
As any good union rep will tell you, the responsible thing to do here is sue the bejeebus out of the corporation and bankrupt it — but first you have to get the Government to cover what the bankrupt corporation cannot. You can then divvy up the corporation itself amongst the Government, the union and the lawyers. And start your new operation under new management — yours. Because the corporation was never actually bankrupt. It just owed a lot of money to… you.
Voila, instant nationalization.
And if you are thinking GM, well, you get bonus points.
Would paying the miners increase or decrease the duration of confinement? What would Dr. Barro say?
I would think the only question would be if they would pay for 24 hours a day vs. whatever a full workday is. How can the mine owners even consider not paying people who are caved in? There’s literally nothing else they can do.
The miner’s wages must be paid till they are out of the pit. It is the company’s responsibility. They were there not because of their own choice but because they were at work.
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