UK trade union GMB has agreed to hold a strike ballot after talks over a dispute over changes to terms for UK offshore workers stalled.
The GMB is taking action of what it describes as unilateral changes to working conditions for workers covered by the Offshore Contractors Agreement (OCA) in UK waters.
The GMB says proper risk assessments and consultation were not held over the changes, which address rota changes, pay rates, sick pay and holiday patterns.
Oil companies have been seeking to make changes to contracts as they look to reduce costs, in a basin which had become expensive even before the oil price started to rise. According to figures released by McKinsey at an event in Aberdeen yesterday (May 21), only about 80% of facilities were economical at $100/bbl and that plummeted to around 55% at the oil price lows of $50/bbl.
The latest talks between the GMB and Unite unions and OCA were held 20 May, but the GMB says it did not get a satisfactory result.
David Hulse, GMB National Officer, said: "We did make some progress but sadly not enough to enable us to go back to members with proposals to resolve this dispute.
"We will now have to proceed with organizing an official ballot for industrial action as the members asked us to do in a consultative ballot earlier this year.
"We remain available for talks should the employers want to pull back from going ahead with the unilateral changes to working practices that has provoked this dispute."
Bill Murray, CEO of the OCA, has said: "The decision by trade union officials to go to industrial ballot over changes to shift and holiday patterns is disappointing. The need to make efficiencies and increase productivity in order to prevent further redundancies and prolong the life of the North Sea is well understood by the industry following a period of unsustainable cost inflation.
"Strike action would only serve to make investment in the North Sea less attractive and jeopardize the long term future of the industry."
"We remain committed to working closely with union representatives and our members to find a solution."
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