Workers at Freeport's Peru mine will not strike

LIMA, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Workers at Cerro Verde, one of Peru's largest copper pits, will not strike, a union leader said on Tuesday, after closing a deal with the company for better wages and working conditions.

The union had threatened, and delayed plans, to strike several times this month and last. Cerro Verde (CVE.LM) is controlled by the U.S.-based miner Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc (FCX.N).

"We have reached a small peace, which I expect to hold for a few months because we closed a contract," union leader Leoncio Amudio told Reuters.

He said the company agreed to a three-year contract, which includes salary increases and a promise to set up a committee to deal with pending labor issues.

Representatives of Cerro Verde in Peru were not immediately available to comment.

"If things go well, I see a closeness developing between workers and the company, which will allow us to deal with the massive problem of falling metals prices," said Amudio.

Global prices for metals, like copper, have plunged in recent weeks on worries about declining demand.

Workers at Cerro Verde struck the mine in October and June. The company has said neither strike cut production at the pit, which last year produced some 273,960 tonnes of copper.

After Chile, Peru is the world's second largest producer of the red metal. (Reporting by Maria Luisa Palomino; Writing by Dana Ford; Editing by David Gregorio)