Marathon workers say no to labor offer in Galveston

Fuel Fix ^ | May 19, 2015 | LM Sixel

[thackney]

Employees at Marathon’s Galveston Bay Refinery overwhelming rejected a contract offer late Monday night, said union spokeswoman Lynne Hancock. Details of the offer, which had been brokered through the help of a federal mediator, were not available.

The 1,100 workers, who are represented by the United Steelworkers union, have been on strike since Feb. 1. They walked off the job as part of a nationwide work stoppage that eventually expanded to include 15 refineries, chemical plants and power generators.

While nearly all the workers nationwide are back to work – with the exception of Marathon’s workers in Texas City and BP’s refinery workers in Toledo – hope was running high that the last group on strike in the Houston area would soon be back to work.

Work schedules have been one of the big sticking points at Marathon’s refinery. In the past, employees have complained that the company wants the ability to change schedules with no prior notice. That would require employees to work on their scheduled days off or continue to work after their official shift ends.

Marathon said it was disappointed but “remains committed” to resolving the dispute and finalizing a new collective bargaining agreement, company spokesman Jamal Kheiry said.

[bestintxas]

I was a white collar worker seconded to fill in for a strike in the 70s.

Marathon should be in a good position as its present weak cashflow demands reining in costs.

And Houston area has still as yet not experienced the full effects of the decline of oil prices.

Those workers must not have been there in the early 80s when empty office buildings and unfinished subdivisions proliferated.

I was, and it was not something to experience again.