Striking US refining workers march in Houston
3/6/2015 12:00:00 AM
By Ben DuBose
Online Editor
Online Editor
HOUSTON -- Striking refinery workers converged throughout the Houston area on Friday afternoon to march in support of a new labor agreement.The United Steelworkers (USW) union declared Friday the "Safe Refineries Save Lives Day of Action" in Houston, calling on regional oil workers to participate in two events.
The first, at 1 p.m, included demonstrations in front of the downtown Houston headquarters of Shell, Motiva and LyondellBasell.
At one point, police blocked several hundred of the striking laborers from entering Shell's headquarters, according to a report from news agency Reuters.
Officers quickly moved to guard entrances to the 50-story building as the workers climbed stairs leading to public doorways. There were no arrests or scuffles.
"We wanted to see if they would talk to us about the negotiations," said Lee Medley, president of United Steelworkers union (USW) local 13-1.
The second, at 4:30 p.m., involved a march to Marathon Petroleum's Galveston Bay refinery. That plant is one of several around the country targeted by the USW for its strike.
The USW says that almost 7,000 union members working in refineries and chemical plants are currently striking around the US to demand that the oil industry "bargain fairly with workers and implement lifesaving improvements in refinery safety, fatigue management, and staffing".
Shell, negotiating on behalf of oil companies, has said the union's "unreasonable" demands would take away hiring flexibility. A full statement form Shell on its positions can be read here.
The work stoppage so far has had little impact on most refineries, since they are highly automated and have been able to weather the walkout by using non-union workers.
Shell, in fact, said in an open letter to employees that it would have enough new workers trained by mid-summer to return its Deer Park refinery in Texas to full staffing levels without its union employees.
Additionally, some previously-striking employees have recently returned to their jobs, according to reports this week. The USW says "only a small fraction" of the near 7,000 workers joining the strike since Feb. 1 have crossed back over.
The walkout by US oil workers, which is now in its fifth week, is the first national action since 1980, when a stoppage lasted three months. The strike now includes 12 refineries and three other plants, including Motiva's Port Arthur refinery in Texas -- which is the largest in the US by capacity.
Both Shell and the USW are expected to resume labor negotiations next week.
Photo courtesy of Egberto Willies
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