Americans, who are beginning to see relief in their budgets due to low gas prices, may soon be in for a shock at the gas pumps.
The United Steelworkers are in the midst of negotiating a new industry-wide contract affecting 30,000 refinery workers.
Without a new agreement in place by Sunday at 12:01 a.m., the Steelworkers may call its members out on strike.
If a strike does occur, and depending on its length, consumers may end up seeing gas prices rise once again–since a strike would affect 63 percent of domestic fuel production.
According to the Houston Chronicle:
Labor negotiators for 30,000 energy workers, including 5,000 in the Houston area, instructed members of its bargaining units to reject the latest contract proposal from Shell Oil Co., according to a text message alert Tuesday from the United Steelworkers union.
“Oil Industry’s 2nd proposal falls FAR short-Inadequate & fails to address any key concerns of membership,” according to the text sent by labor negotiators from the union. Details of the offer weren’t available.
On Friday, the union rejected Shell’s first contract proposal, according to a text message calling it “offensive.” Shell is the lead negotiator, acting on behalf of the energy industry nationwide, for talks covering 233 sites including refineries, pipelines, oil terminals and petrochemical plants. Current contracts end Sunday at 12:01 a.m. for the majority of union-represented sites, including 19 locally.
A strike by refinery workers would be the first for the industry since a three-month stoppage in 1980, according to Manufacturing.net.
So, ‘Shell is the lead negotiator, acting on behalf of the energy industry nationwide’? Like a ‘bosses’ union’?
Look, first, examine how much profits – hand over fist – the big energy corporations are making. This is about re-distributing those profits, profits made by those who actually do the work. The corporations are only using the threat of price rises to divide public opinion against the unions, when really they don’t care as long as their shareholders’ profits are maintained.
The best solution would be to nationalise the energy companies under democratic workers’ control and plan and invest in more environmentally cleaner sources of energy that won’t pollute. Profits, after all, only represent, by and large, the unpaid labour of the working class.
Oh, I see my pro-union comment didn’t ‘pass moderation’. What a surprise.
Or maybe I was wrong? Good. Carry on.