Esso workers secure new EA after 10-year campaign

After more than a decade of bargaining, industrial action and legal challenges, Australian Workers’ Union members at Esso, a local subsidiary of ExxonMobil, have voted up a new Enterprise Agreement (EA) to replace an existing agreement signed in 2011.

68% of workers have voted yes to the agreement, which AWU Gippsland organiser Shane Burd said is a positive step forward for workers, who have been battling the oil and gas giant for more than 10 years.

“For more than a decade, Esso has thrown everything in the legal arsenal at its workers, in a protracted effort to strip away the pay and conditions of hard-working offshore Bass Strait oil and gas crews,” Shane said.

“This included an attempt to terminate the existing EA, which was thrown out by the Fair Work Commission in 2019 and numerous lockouts.

“These delaying tactics have come at great cost to workers—as a result of Esso’s intransigence, the company has avoided paying more than $88 million in salaries, which have not changed since 2013.

“Given that Esso makes around $15.5 billion a year through its extraction of Australian resources, paying a tiny fraction in taxes, it’s fair to say that we were hoping for a more substantial offer.

“However, I am confident that this is the best negotiated outcome that we can get, and I’m pleased that, after such a lengthy period of bargaining, industrial action, and court cases, Esso has finally made an offer that is acceptable to the majority of our members.”

AWU Victorian Branch Secretary Ronnie Hayden said the outcome reflected a decade of hard work for both members and officials.

“This was a ten-year battle on the picket line, in the Fair Work Commission and at the bargaining table. Our members have given it everything they’ve had in the face of some of the most hostile tactics from an employer we’ve ever seen.”

“Esso successfully shut down our ability to take protected industrial action during negotiations for this Agreement, which made it extremely difficult for workers to actually fight for a decent outcome.”

“This agreement is a win for AWU members and their families and will provide certainty for workers currently struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.”

The new agreement includes a 22 per cent increase on all-purpose allowances, including annualised overtime. A number of items have all been moved into the benefits bearing clause so that all benefits accrues superannuation, resulting in a big increase in super for workers.

In addition, Esso has agreed to a set of principles regarding room allocation. The AWU hopes that this will result in better conditions for nightshift workers, who are currently often required to double-bunk and sleep in rooms with communal toilets.

Benefits from the agreement include:

• 2011: The last agreement between Esso and the Australian Workers Union (AWU) was signed.
• 2013: The Esso Agreement expired, ending guaranteed annual wage rises.
• 2015: Members undertook protected industrial action during negotiations for a new agreement.
• 2017: The AWU attempted to bargain for a new enterprise agreement but was denied by the High Court. The decision also bans AWU members from taking further protected industrial action.
• 2019: Esso attempted to terminate the existing enterprise agreement. However, the Fair Work Commission blocked Esso from terminating the agreement, marking a significant victory for oil and gas workers and their unions (AWU, Electrical Trades Union, and Australian Manufacturing Workers Union). Deputy President Val Gostencnik stated that Esso’s attempts were unfair.
• February 2024: A proposed agreement received a 68% “YES” vote from workers.