Nick Chaffey, Southern and South East Socialist Party
Hundreds of GMB and Unite strikers, working for contractors Altrad, Bilfinger, and Enerveo at the Fawley refinery near Southampton, mounted a mass picket on 21 November at Gate 1, demanding the maximum £2.37 hourly bonus.
Unite official Malcolm Dumper attacked the monster-profits being made by Mobil and contractors, while offering a measly 2.5% pay offer. Gary Palmer, GMB regional officer, urged the pickets to stand firm against the attack on living standards and continue the strike for better pay.
Speaking to the mass picket, Socialist Party member Declan Clune gave a message of support from Southampton trades council: “You’re part of a growing strike wave, with nurses and teachers joining the fight, to stop the driving down of wages.”
A striker told us: “This used to be a good job. I started here 27 years ago. Scaffolders are working here with no sick pay, in all weathers, and the company’s making billions. But they’re penny-pinchers. They don’t spend on anything that doesn’t pump oil. The plant’s 70 years old. It’s a rustbucket and a dangerous place to work. They talk about safety but when there’s an accident they want you back at work before anything’s fixed. All we’re asking for is what’s fair.”
Strike action is set to continue for two weeks.
