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posted by martyb on Monday February 16 2015, @04:12AM   Printer-friendly
from the you-made-your-bed... dept.

Reuters reports that managers at US oil refineries are going to the mats, sleeping on recently purchased mattresses inside rental trailers, as refinery workers enter the third week of their strike at nine US oil refineries that experts and some employees say raises concerns over safety and operations. For months, retired refinery worker John Ostberg from BP's Toledo Refinery has been warning his bosses in emails about their plans to run the refineries with replacement workers and supervisors if a strike occurred. He fears that replacement workers are not properly trained, or too far removed from the frontlines, to respond to unit upsets and other problems that can escalate quickly without experienced intervention. “Management says it’s safe. I disagree,” says Ostberg.

At least three of the nine US oil refineries targeted by a nationwide strike of USW members have reported upsets and unplanned repairs since their workers walked out on February 1 and one of the refineries has shut down completely. Criff Reyes, who has worked Tesoro's Martinez Refinery alkylation unit for 16 years, says he believes that Tesoro opted to shut down the plant — rather than restart it following maintenance — because managers are not qualified or experienced enough to run it after about 400 USW members walked out. Meanwhile Ostberg, who helped run the refinery operating center (ROC) — the heart of the plant — warns that if there is a problem with one unit at the refinery, it can quickly grow to other units and often takes more manpower to put under control. “I sit behind a blast-proof wall, so I’m not worried about my safety," says Ostberg. "But I fear for everyone else.”

 
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  • (Score: 2) by Daiv on Monday February 16 2015, @04:06PM

    by Daiv (3940) on Monday February 16 2015, @04:06PM (#145679)

    All values of all commodities are perceived. Every business in every single commodity wants their commodity to be worth more for any reason they can grasp then shout from the mountaintops about how bad everything is and that it will now cost more.

    For a while, as gas was increasing through the upper $2 USD and into the $3 USD range, refineries were regularly shutting down for various reasons (maintenance, upgrades, Thursdays etc). Every time one was shut down, it was used to justify a rise in the price of oil, and thus gasoline. Ignoring that supply was still outpacing demand, they only focused on F.U.D. so they could justify price increases. They = commodity owners, "investors" (wall street) and media.

    This tactic is being used by internet providers (mobile and home), any real estate business, farmers, pretty much everyone. Strikes when oil is at the cheapest cost it's been in years are very conveniently timed and it seems like a no-brainer that this is the perfect time for an oil company to allow a strike. They now have someone to point the share holders to and blame them.

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