Workers Strike Freeport's Cerro Verde Mine in Peru

The union at Freeport-McMoRan's Cerro Verde copper mine, the third-largest in Peru, said on Thursday workers were on strike.

In June, union workers struck at the mine for 11 days in an attempt to pressure the company to comply with provisions in their labour contract.

"The strike started, at 6:00 (12.00 GMT) this morning," Leoncio Amudio, head of the mine's union, told Reuters.

Cerro Verde is located in the southern region of Arequipa, where last year it produced some 273,960 tons of copper.

Amudio said union and company officials are planning to meet in Peru's capital, Lima, later on Thursday to discuss the workers' demands. A company representative was not immediately available for comment.

Dozens of strikes have been held this year in Peru, one of the world's leading metals exporters, as workers and the poor demand a bigger share of a seven-year economic boom.

After Chile, Peru is the world's second-largest producer of copper.

by Dana Ford and Maria Luisa Palomino, Reuters.