Cuts risk oil future

Panic job cuts in the oil industry risk undermining the future of the industry and the health and safety of those who work in it, Unite Scottish secretary Pat Rafferty has warned. And the union has accused major oil companies and the UK government of failing to have a plan in place to deal with falling oil prices.

Unite is backing Labour calls in the Scottish Parliament for a collaborative approach to save jobs and skills for future generations.

Lewis Macdonald, shadow energy minister in the Scottish parliament based in Holyrood, is calling for action over the future of offshore jobs, skills and workplace safety in the wake of the industry’s downturn. He will highlight human cost of the current crisis in the North Sea as a result of the slump in oil prices in a debate in Holyrood.

Welcoming the debate Unite Scottish secretary, Pat Rafferty said, “We’ve heard much about the need for a relaxed tax-regime to secure investment in North Sea oil and gas, but less about the impact on the industry’s most important resource – its workers.

“The reality is that people are paying with their livelihoods because of a failure by the oil ‘majors’ and the Westminster government to prepare for a fall in oil prices.

“Over time oil prices will recover, but there is real danger that the rapid, non-consultative cuts we are witnessing will undermine health and safety, and the future of the industry for years to come.

“Lewis is proposing that government leads a genuinely collaborative approach to addressing the immediate challenges facing our most important industry, which is exactly what’s required if we are to sustain jobs, skills and safety for future generations.

“We would expect all Scottish parliamentarians to fully support this timely motion.”