Tanker drivers get early pay settlement
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TANKER DRIVERS working for two of the big oil companies have already accepted new pay deals, and drivers at a third oil company are considering an offer on the table.
This is much earlier than the normal winter pay round and could pre-empt possible future wage disputes. The three companies involved are Mobil, Petrofina and BP.
Mobil wanted to get away from a winter pay settlement date. A Mobil spokesman said that a May 1 settlement date is far more convenient for the company, and that this offer, which is dated July 1, is a move towards that for next year.
Mobil's offer, amounting to 6 per cent plus allowances plus a further 6 per cent in November, takes its tanker drivers up to a basic of around £87 a week by November.
This offer is being made to all Mobil staff, from drivers to white collar workers, union members and non-represented groups. The offer is currently being considered by the various unions involved, and Mobil did not want to comment on its hopes for acceptance.
Petrofina drivers have already received a 51/2 per cent rise, mostly a cost-of-living increase related to the Retail Price Index. But this interim rise will be taken into account in the main pay settlement in winter.
The other oil company which has already reached agreement with its tanker drivers is BP. This is a productivity deal which is an innovation for oil tanker drivers.
Each BP distribution depot is set a performance target which, if attained in full, earns drivers a maximum of £7.60 a week bonus. BP says this is a genuine efficiency deal. If it is successful other oil companies may follow suit.
The simultaneous announcement of these three pay deals — two settled and one still on the table — is a coincidence, since each offer was arrived at quite separately. But it could indicate a desire to get away from the usual pay wrangles that occur in November throughout industry.