With 85% of votes, Colombia's National Agriculture Workers Union (Sintrainagro) ratified a strike for 20,000 banana industry workers, website Caracol.com.co reported.

The vote comes as industry workers and employers have struggled to come to an agreement over wages.

Union president Guillermo Rivera Zapata indicated earlier that worker wages were under threat of being cut by 43% to adjust to a weak dollar.

Hope remains to avoid work stoppages, however, with discussions planned today in Medellin, Rivera Zapata told the Colombian publication.

Further talks between the union and employers are anticipated Thursday under the mediation of the Agriculture Minister Francisco Estupiñán Heredia.

According to Rivera Zapata, a strike would affect 288 banana plantations in Urabá and prevent the export of 243,000 boxes of the fruit a day at a value of US$2.4 million.

The details of the strike are expected to be made clear at the end of the week.

Related story: Colombian banana workers threaten wage strike

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