Daily Newsletter

04 September 2023

Daily Newsletter

04 September 2023

Australian workers reject Chevron deal, strike to go ahead 

The Offshore Alliance union described the deal as “completely out of touch”.

Florence Jones September 01 2023

Workers at two of Australia’s largest liquified natural gas (LNG) facilities are due to proceed with strike action after they rejected a deal from Chevron on pay conditions. 

Mediation talks are due to take place between Chevron and Offshore Alliance, a coalition of two workers unions.  

Offshore Alliance said in a Facebook post that workers had almost unanimously voted down the proposal from Chevron on Friday. The union accused Chevron of having “no idea, no clue and [being] completely out of touch with our members”. 

Chevron told reporters that "the vote was part of the bargaining process and an important step which enabled employees to share their views”.  

Chevron’s Gorgon and Wheatstone projects in Western Australia account for more than 5% of global LNG capacity. 

Workers are due to commence industrial action at 06:00am local time on 7 September unless an agreement is reached. According to current plans, workers will stop working for 11 hours and stop performing certain tasks until 14 September. 

A senior figure at the Fair Work Commission, Australia’s workplace tribunal, will mediate talks between Chevron and Offshore Alliance representatives.  

Earlier this month, workers voted in favour of industrial action in a ballot. Employees are calling for improved pay and working conditions.  

Workers at the facilities of Australian major Woodside were also due to take part in strike action. However, Woodside reached an agreement with workers on 24 August, averting disruption. 

The agreement caused a drop in Dutch and British wholesale gas prices on Thursday. 

European gas prices also spiked last week following the announcement from workers of both companies that they would engage in industrial action. Woodside CEO Meg O’Neill described the prices as “irrational” and a “clear sign of the fragility of the market” to the Financial Times. 

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