French refinery workers' strike extended

Workers at Total SA's 342,000 b/d Gonfreville L'Orcher refinery in northern France have extended their strike to Oct. 17.

Oct. 14, 2005

Doris Leblond
OGJ Correspondent

PARIS, Oct. 14 -- Workers at Total SA's 342,000 b/d Gonfreville L'Orcher refinery in northern France have extended their strike to Oct. 17. Although only 70 workers out of refinery's 1,600 workforce are on strike, they belong to the key product mix and dispatch division and have caused shutdown of the whole refinery (OGJ Online, Oct. 11, 2005).

The strikers are asking for a €200/month pay raise, but Total spokeswoman Bertillle Aron told OGJ that annual pay negotiations for the group are due in December when salaries are adjusted case by case basis, if needed.