COMINCO <CLT> SETS TENTATIVE TALKS ON STRIKE
Cominco Ltd said it set
tentative talks with three striking union locals that rejected
on Saturday a three-year contract offer at Cominco's Trail and
Kimberley, British Columbia lead-zinc operations.
    The locals, part of United Steelworkers of America,
represent 2,600 production and maintenance workers. No date has
been set for the talks, the spokesman replied to a query.
    The spokesman said talks were still ongoing with the two
other striking locals, representing 600 office and technical
workers. Production at Trail and Kimberley has been shut down
since the strike started May 9.
    Each of the five locals has a separate contract that
expired April 30, but the main issues are similar.
    The Trail smelter produced 240,000 long tons of zinc and
110,000 long tons of lead last year, while the Sullivan mine at
Kimberley produced 2.2 mln long tons of ore last year, most for
processing at Trail.
    Revenues from Trail's smelter totaled 356 mln Canadian dlrs
in 1986.
 Reuter
