News / Unions “postpone” gas plant strike
CONSTRUCTION workers at the Shetland gas plant have postponed two 24 hour strikes planned over the next two Fridays in a dispute over shared accommodation and travel times.
A mass meeting of more than 300 union members voted by majority to ballot the rest of their colleagues on accepting an offer of up to £5,500 compensation by chief site contractor Petrofac.
The move comes after a similar meeting on Tuesday unanimously rejected the offer, despite union leaders recommending otherwise.
Workers had planned picket lines in Lerwick where Petrofac has three accommodation barges for workers, as well as at the site at Sullom Voe in Shetland’s north mainland.
However on Thursday morning shop stewards asked management if the original offer was still on the table before holding the mass meeting in the afternoon.
Unite regional industrial organiser John Taylor explained that due to the shift system only around half of the 700 construction workers affected by Petrofac’s offer had voted to strike on Tuesday, adding that he had been surprised that everyone present had rejected it.
“The workforce has agreed that it’s only fair that everyone gets a say in the matter, so they have agreed to postpone industrial action,” he said.
“There was still an amount of people who wanted to carry on with industrial action, but a majority decided it was only fair for everyone to get an opportunity to vote.”
Unite and GMB will now ballot their members over the next 12 days to make a final decision on the company’s offer.
The row over workers sharing two-bed rooms at an 848 bed accommodation block at Sella Ness or spending two hours on a bus travelling to and from work from Lerwick has been simmering for months.
Petrofac, who have chartered the 193 bed cruise liner Ocean Endeavour for six months to ease the accommodation problem, said they were pleased by Thursday’s “apparent change of heart”.
A spokesman said: “Despite the fact that accommodation sharing has always been part of the employment deal, we put together a generous offer that was accepted by union officials and shop stewards that would have meant workers being eligible for up to an extra £5,500 on top of their salaries – so we hope that the membership will accept it this time.
“We’ve always said that we take the welfare of our staff very seriously and that we were keen to find a solution that was in everyone’s best interests while ensuring the successful delivery of the project.
“If we can reach agreement this final time we are happy to go forward on a ‘clean slate’ basis. “If the offer is not accepted this time then it will be off the table permanently and we will have to look at other ways of addressing the root causes of the problem – room sharing and travel time.”
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