Socialist Organiser

Oil: a fight for recognition

A wave of unofficial strikes have been sweeping oil platforms in the North Sea over the last two months. The dispute over safety, pay and conditions is fast turning into a battle for union recognition throughout the industry. The strikes are organised by an unofficial rank and file body - the Oil Industry Liaison Committee, or OIL, but they have the tacit support of local union leaders. The disputes began with contract workers who want guaranteed pay and conditions under the Offshore Construction Agreement. At present bosses cancel the agreement when rigs hook up and begin oil production. Most...

North Sea strike on 6 July

North Sea oil construction workers staged 24-hour strikes on 14 platforms on Monday 19 June. A strike across the whole North Sea oilfield has been called for 6 July - the anniversary of the Piper Alpha disaster which killed 167 people. There has been a series of unofficial strikes and work to rules in the past three weeks. Acion is organised similarly to the London Tube strikes, by semi-clandestine rank and file 'liaison committees', with the tacit support of union officials. Contract workers want guaranteed pay and conditions under the Offshore Construction Agreement. At present bosses cancel...

Hell In The North Sea

The gas explosion shook the 'Ocean Odyssey', killing a man in his 20s and setting the water ablaze, just as attempts were being made to exhume bodies from the Piper Alpha platform lying at the bottom of the sea. The coincidence could not have been sharper. It was the third gas explosion in the North Sea in less than 3 months. The only reason more people weren't killed last Thursday was becuase the rig was already on alert. All non-essential personnel had prepared to evacuate an hour beforehand and 66 escaped alive. At the time of writing the precise technical explanation of the explosion is...

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