5thUPDATE:Over 2,000 Energy Plant Contract Workers In Walkouts
June 19 2009 - 12:18PM
Dow Jones News
More than 2,000 contract workers at energy facilities across the
U.K downed tools Friday to participate in unofficial strike action
over sweeping job cuts at French oil major Total SA's (TOT) Lindsey
oil refinery.
Total's move to lay off 647 contract workers Friday at its
Lindsey refinery in Lincolnshire, eastern England, was met with
anger by unions and workers. The Unite union put the total job
losses closer to 900.
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (JEC) informed workers by post of
the cuts, telling workers to reapply for their jobs in the next
four days. No-one was immediately available to comment at JEC.
The move follows a week-long dispute at the facility and
unofficial strike action after 65 workers were told the
hydro-sulfurization project they were working on was close to
completion, putting their jobs in doubt.
Thousands of contractors, including welders, electricians and
pipe-fitters across the U.K have joined the protest in support of
workers at Lindsey.
The largest walkout Friday was seen at Royal Dutch Shell's
(RDSB) Stanlow 240,000-barrels-a-day oil refinery where 450
contractors left the site, while three RWE AG (RWE.XE) power plants
saw more than 400 walk out. At Ratcliffe power plant 150 left the
site.
In addition a number of workers at British Energy's Hinkley
Point B nuclear power station and Dragon Liquefied Natural Gas
terminal in Wales joined the protests.
This is the third episode of rapid industrial action to hit the
U.K.'s energy industry in five months, but the strikes have so far
failed to affect output from plants, according to the companies
that manage the installations. The speed of the action has been
attributed to the increased use of mobile technology and
social-networking sites to mobilize workers.
The U.K. government has waded in to the argument, taking a hard
line against unofficial action, urging Lindsey workers to reapply
for their jobs and start talks with bosses.
"The government's view is that unofficial strike action and
demonstrations are never the right response to industrial relations
problems," said a government spokesman at the U.K. prime minister's
daily briefing.
The GMB union said it condemned Total's actions. "Total have for
a full week refused to meet the union to resolve the problems
through Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service," GMB
general-secretary Paul Kenny said.
Discontent over the way the company has handled the negotiations
could see the unofficial protests spread further, Kenny warned. "It
seems pretty obvious that there is a mass case of victimization
taking place here," he said.
The conciliation service has struggled to get all parties
involved to sit down together at the negotiating table.
Total spokeswoman Emily Cooper said the company supports
constructive negotiation between contract companies and their
workforces under the national agreement between the construction
industry and unions, but these talks "cannot take place whilst
faced with an illegal dispute."
"We have had contact with ACAS today and hope to be able to talk
with them further next week once our contractor workforce has had
the opportunity to decide if they wish to continue on this
important project," Cooper said.
-By Angela Henshall, Dow Jones Newswires; (4420) 7842 9285;
angela.henshall@dowjones.com
(Selina Williams and Sherry Su contributed to this story.)