Paying the price for industry’s failures

Unite EC member Jane Stewart spoke at the TUC conference today (September 14) in support of a motion highlighting the current issues members in the offshore oil and gas industry now face.

“This is the most serious situation that the offshore unions have experienced in the North Sea,” she told Congress.

“Following the continuing collapse in the price of Brent Crude, we face massive job losses.”

Jane noted that oil experts Wood Mackenzie predict half of the oil and gas fields in the North Sea could be closed in the next five years.

“With 320 fields in production,” she added, “they predict the closures could result in as much as a 44 per cent drop in production.”

Jane highlighted the many attacks that oil and gas workers have had to endure as the industry fails to come to grips with the current crisis.

“5,500 direct jobs have been lost in recent months and as many as 65,000 jobs could be lost to the sectors in total,” she said.

“Investment has been slashed and only 38 new fields are expected to come on-stream over the next five years.

“It is expected that by 2019, companies will be spending more in dismantling North Sea facilities than developing new fields.”

 
“This has taken place against a backdrop of oil companies making billions in the past, failing to invest in the future and not anticipating the current crisis,” Jane added.

“And our members – and those of RMT, GMB, Nautilus and BALPA – who risk their lives working in one of this most dangerous of industries – are being asked to pay the price for these failures.”

Jane explained that Unite and the RMT are balloting in the catering side of the industry, and that Unite also “has a very serious situation” in regard to the union’s agreement with operating contractors which they hope to resolve.

Jane told Congress that there “needs to be a serious reassessment of the situation rather than continuing shut downs.”

“We should also learn from our colleagues in Norway where there is ongoing discussion in regard to the Norwegian Shelf,” she added.

“Finally,” Jane concluded, “there is the failure to have an independent public enquiry into helicopter operations in the North Sea and we reiterate the vital need for a public enquiry into all aspects of offshore safety.