Oil workers on biggest strike in decades

Oil industry workers at various facilities representing about 10 percent of the country’s refining capacity went on strike starting Sunday.

The work stoppage covers nine refineries employing United Steelworkers members, after the union failed to reach a contract agreement with Royal Dutch Shell, negotiating on behalf of other companies including Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp., Bloomberg Business reported.

{mosads}The union represents workers at 200 facilities, such as refineries, terminals, pipelines and chemical plants.

It is the biggest strike since a 1980 national strike, and it caused crude oil prices to rise in Monday morning trading by 43 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $48.67 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Only one of the nine plants affected has slowed down work because of the strike, Bloomberg said. But a full walkout could affect 64 percent of the United States’ fuel refining capacity.

“If the strike escalates, that would be detrimental to the oil price,” David Lennox, a resource analyst at Fat Prophets, told Bloomberg. “It will put high U.S. production out on the market and there is nowhere for it to go.”

The union asked in contract negotiations for a pay increase, stronger fatigue rules and measures to prioritize keeping union workers on the job instead of contract workers.