Oil and gas strikers in the North Sea want better pay and conditions
Oil and gas operators in the North Sea are being warned of a “tsunami” of industrial unrest after workers voted to strike over jobs, pay and conditions. Some 1,400 Unite members in a number of companies operating in the UK Continental Shelf are involved in the dispute.
The union warned that platforms and offshore installations will be brought to a “standstill” due to the specialised roles its members undertake.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said, “Oil and gas companies have been given free rein to enjoy massive windfall profits in the North Sea—drilling concessions are effectively licences to print money.
“1,400 offshore workers are now set to strike against these employers who are raking it in but refusing to give them a fair share of the pie. This will create a tsunami of industrial unrest in the offshore sector.
“Unite will support these members every step of the way in their fight for better jobs, pay and conditions.”
The prospective action includes electrical, production and mechanical technicians in addition to deck crew, scaffolders, crane operators, pipefitters, platers and riggers.
John Boland, Unite industrial officer, added, “Unite has received unprecedented support in favour of industrial action in the UK Continental Shelf. It is the biggest mandate we have received in a generation in the offshore sector.
“There is no doubt that this is directly linked to oil and gas companies reaping record profits while the workforce gets scraps from the table. Unite’s members are angry at the corporate greed being shown by offshore operators and contractors.
“Now these major global companies are set to face the consequences as dozens of offshore platforms will be brought to a standstill in a matter of weeks.” No dates have yet been set for industrial action.
Engineering workers employed by Balfour Beatty struck for 36 hours across Friday, Saturday and Sunday of last week in a row over pay. It’s the third 36-hour strike after RMT union members rejected the company’s 5.5 percent pay offer since April 2022.
But as bosses refused to cave in to workers’ demands, they were enjoying a 42 percent increase in underlying profits last year. Shareholders have been given huge dividends as a result.
The company expects 2023 profit to be broadly in line with 2022 when it was ranked the third most profitable British construction company.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said, “Balfour Beatty is swimming in money and could easily afford a pay rise which deals with the cost of living crisis for our members.” Now the union must call more strikes so the workers can win a proper pay rise.
Jet petrol garages are set to be hit by an all-out strike from Monday of next week. Tanker drivers employed by JW Suckling and Hoyer Gas and Petroleum Logistics Ltd are fighting over pay.
Some 40 drivers who are members of the Unite union are based at depots in Essex, Grangemouth, Stockport and west London.
The dispute is a result of the drivers being paid £5 an hour less than workers employed by other hauliers on the same contract. They also have poorer terms and working conditions.
Anti-racists countered and outnumbered far right protests last week targeting refugees housed in hotels.
Some 100 people outnumbered a group of 20 racists protesting outside the Grove House Hotel in Wallasey, Merseyside, on Friday of last week. The racists demanded the government “close the borders to stop the boats and protect our women and children”.
But Stand Up To Racism activist Mark O’Brien said, “The rally supporting the refugees received huge support from residents and passers by with many honking their horns in support, winding down car windows to say ‘well done’.”
He added, “Residents were emphatic that the refugees had been no trouble at all in the area.” Counter-protesters included members of the FBU, UCU and CWU unions.
It came after anti-fascists also opposed a protest of some 60 racists in the area the week before. In Ipswich, around 100 people also countered a racist protest of 20 people outside a hotel.
Over 1,400 security guards employed by Heathrow Airports Ltd are set to strike for ten days from Friday of next week.
The strike involves security guards at Terminal 5—used by British Airways—and also the security guards who are responsible for checking all cargo. Workers rejected a 10 percent pay increase following years of pay freezes and cuts. A security guard at the airport is paid as little as £24,000 a year.
Outsourced catering and hospitality workers at University College London (UCL) are fighting back after being hit with compulsory redundancies. The eight workers, who are all members of the IWGB union, are outsourced to CH&CO.
The company says it is making redundancies because profits are down. But the bosses have recently hired several managers on higher pay. Of the workers targeted, all are outspoken union members, and most signed a collective grievance against UCL last year.
In a letter to CH&CO and UCL provost Michael Spence, the IWGB said, “It is our view that that these redundancies are a form of retaliation against workers for their trade union activity. “
The IWGB is asking supporters to write Michael Spence at [email protected]
Some 330 bus workers employed by Arriva in Newcastle and Northumberland are being balloted for strikes in a dispute over pay.
The Unite union members have been offered a below inflation pay increase worth 10 percent—paid in two stages—for the drivers on the highest pay rate. Other workers, who are often paid £12.65 an hour, received considerably lower pay offers.
The ballot closes on Thursday of next week. If workers vote in favour strikes could begin at the Ashington, Blyth and Walkergate depots after Easter.
College workers at Kirklees college in Huddersfield and Dewsbury are voting on whether to strike after being hit with a below-inflation 1 percent pay increase this year. The members of the UCU union are angry that they haven’t been handed a significant pay rise since 2009.
Some workers told UCU education union that their pay is so low that they struggle to afford the bus fare to work and are skipping meals and visiting food banks. The ballot is set to close on 14 April.
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