‘Redundant’ Flotta staff asked to stay
(From The Orcadian dated October 26, 2000)

Flotta oil terminal workers given their notice this summer following the takeover by Talisman Energy have been asked to stay for longer than expected.

The decision led to claims this week that the operators couldn’t run the plant with a reduced workforce, but Talisman said it was all part and parcel of an agreement previously made clear to staff, enabling a training programme to be completed.

The news follows the decision by Talisman back in July to axe 70 jobs at the terminal – a decision described as ruthless, but also as the best way to secure the long-term future of the terminal.

Some members of staff were due to leave in a few days, but it was revealed this week that 18 of those made redundant have been asked to stay on. Twelve of them are Smit employees who will work for an extra few weeks and six are former Elf employees who have been kept on for an extra three months to enable training requirements to be completed.

Speaking this week TGWU district secretary Mr Ian Bruce said the news came as no surprise because he believed the workforce had been cut right back to the bone.

“People have been asked to stay on and there are obviously very mixed feelings about it,” he said. “Some of the people who have been made redundant have in my view been discriminated against because of their past record as trade union activists. They are finding now that the core group are having difficulties with in coping.”

He added: “I am very concerned for those who are working for the contractors like Smit who have been at the terminal for 25 years and at the end of the day they are being offloaded with very little – a basic compensation.”

Terminal manager Mr Trevor Newton said the decision to retain staff had been brought about though because of illness and workers taking their holiday entitlements.

“This has stretched the training programme out through a longer period than what we hoped for,” he said. “We can either ignore that or take measures to make sure that the plant is properly covered while we complete training. If we had not done there would be an argument that we were perhaps not taking the responsibilities on board with regard to the safety of the plant.

He continued: “It is not something that has just arisen, because we need to complete certain training and there was always the chance that we would need some people to stay longer than the time frame that was set up for the end of October.”

Mr Newton said the Smit workers had been offered an enhancement to their redundancy terms if they stayed an extra few weeks and he dismissed claims that the decision had shown that the terminal was understaffed and therefore unsafe.

“That is not the situation,” he said. “It is the fact that when we embarked upon this programme we knew we needed to complete a certain amount of training and that was made quite clear to everybody right from the outset.

“We are obliged to ensure that we train people properly as well as run the plant properly. It has been done in full openness with the staff and those concerned have readily agreed to stay.”

Commenting on the recent fire at Shetland’s Sullom Voe terminal, Mr Newton said he was in no doubt that Flotta had the right amount of staff to cope with an emergency.

“We have been through this review cycle of the number of people required several times now and we are quite satisfied that the levels are correct,” he said.

“We are running around 35 per cent capacity and gas is well under 25 per cent capacity so the levels of activity at the terminal are significantly lower than they have been.”

Asked what morale was like at the terminal, Mr Newton admitted that it had been a difficult time, but said things were now improving.

“There has been an improvement, but it is still a very difficult period for people when you are in this situation where those that are staying are staying and there are still a number of people there still to leave.”