BY BEN COURTICE
MELBOURNE — Members of the National Union of Workers at the Qenos refinery in Altona have reached the 100th day of a management lockout. The workers are holding out against management's attempt to impose large reductions in an already stretched workforce.
The company, owned by ExxonMobil, is trying a number of avenues to defeat the workers. After an Industrial Relations Commission hearing on January 19, management proposed an agreement that is, according to NUW assistant state secretary Martin Pakula, worse than the original proposal.
In the meantime, Qenos have trained a scab workforce, but are as yet unable to use it as Workcover have not given it a safety clearance. Management are also trying to reach an agreement that covers NUW plant operators with one of the other unions on the site. Pakula said this was unlikely since the other unions — the Australian Workers Union, the Electrical Trades Union and the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union — support the NUW members.
The locked-out workers, aware of the massive safety risks to themselves and the community if their numbers are cut, are maintaining a picket line at Maidstone Road, Altona (just off Kororoit Creek Road). They are receiving some financial support, especially from workers at the nearby Mobil refinery, but more support, including donations or visits to the picket line, is welcome.