News / Accommodation dispute rocks Total gas plant
TRADE union negotiators are flying to Shetland on Thursday to resolve a festering dispute about accommodation at the £800 million Total gas plant.
The move comes after 150 workers employed by oil services company Petrofac, who are contracted to build the plant, walked off the job for two hours at lunchtime on Tuesday.
For months construction workers have been grumbling about cramped conditions at a new 850 bed accommodation block built at Sella Ness, near the building site close to Sullom Voe oil terminal.
The issue boiled over on Monday when 150 men refused to work any more than their contracted 38 hours unless their grievances were resolved.
Petrofac managers called them in on Tuesday and told them to leave the site if they were not prepared to work overtime.
The men walked out and held a meeting with their shop stewards, before deciding to return to work as normal pending the arrival on Thursday of negotiators from their trade union Unite.
Unite’s regional industrial organiser John Taylor said: “The lads had a dispute about accommodation and said they would only work their contracted 38 hour week.
“The company believed they should work the extended working week and asked them to go off site.
“They had a meeting and are now back working normally, but we shall be taking this up officially through the disputes procedure.”
Taylor explained that the men were fed up sharing cramped two man cabins in the Sella Ness accommodation block.
“They are very small cabins and if you want to sleep at 10 at night and the guy you share a bunk with wants to watch the football at one in the morning or go to the toilet it doesn’t bode well for getting a good night’s sleep,” he said.
Supervisors are being housed in single man units on board the 200 bed floating hotel Bibby Stockholm in Lerwick, with a second 200 bed accommodation barge Kalmar due next week.
Currently Petrofac and its sub contractors have around 800 construction workers on site building the gas plant, which is due to open in 2014.
It is part of energy giant Total’s £3.3 billion Laggan-Tormore development to pipe gas ashore from the west of Shetland.
Total are also constructing a 100 bed hotel at nearby Brae which is due to open in August, when the workforce is expected to peak at 1,400.
A Petrofac spokesman said: “Petrofac is committed to running a successful project in Shetland whilst ensuring that suitable accommodation is available for our workforce and doesn’t place undue strain on the local infrastructure.
“Petrofac is very keen that all parties continue to work together effectively, including to resolve any workplace issues that may arise.”
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