Striking BP Whiting Refinery employees cite safety as a key issue in the negotiations between the United Steelworkers and oil companies, and they say they don't have to look further back than Wednesday or beyond their own plant as proof that their industry is a dangerous one both for workers and the communities they're in.
An explosion rocked an ExxonMobil oil refinery about 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, shaking the neighborhood, raining debris and ash on nearby lawns, and resulting in minor injuries to four contractors.
Sixty years ago this August, a series of explosions ripped through the Whiting refinery, then owned by Standard Oil, killing two people. It took eight days to extinguish the fire.
"There's a time bomb here. It could happen again," said Terry Steagall, a United Steelworkers member working at ArcelorMittal who was among a group of steel workers who joined striking BP employees on the picket line Thursday night.
Dave Danko, president of USW Local 7-1, which represents 1,100 maintenance, operations and security employees and firefighters at the Whiting refinery, said more recently there was an explosion at the plant last year that rocked the neighborhood in addition to a large discharge into Lake Michigan.
He said leaks and fires have become so commonplace at the plant that workers have become desensitized.
"It's disturbing to us," Danko said, adding working conditions have to be unsafe for 1,100 people to walk away from good-paying jobs.
"We feel we're standing up for the entire region," he said in an interview Friday.
Danko said instances like these, as well as the BP explosion at its Texas City plant in 2005 in which 15 workers lost their lives, illustrate why it's important to have union members properly trained in safety procedures and on the equipment doing the work, and that those workers aren't overly tired due to long working hours.
The USW has cited what it calls onerous overtime hours and the company's desire to use nonunion contract workers to replace retiring USW members as two key issues in these negotiations, which it hopes will end in a three-year contract for its members working at refineries across the nation.
It issued strikes at nine refineries on Feb. 1 and two more, including Whiting, a week later, and Thursday told members at other refineries to be on alert for a possible strike as well.
BP spokesman Scott Dean said safety is the top priority for the company. He said since 2011, the Whiting refinery has had an annual average injury rate of 0.42 injuries per 100 employees, which places it well below the average injury rate for other U.S. industries, including construction, air transportation and agricultural sectors.
"In 2014, the vast majority of OSHA recordable injuries at the refinery had to do with weather-related slips and trips and minor hand injuries," Dean said.
Danko said Dean is relying on the wrong data, however. He said Dean is looking at OSHA reports when he should be looking at the Baker Panel report filed after the Texas City explosion. He said the report states working without adequate sleep is equivalent to working inebriated.
Danko and other striking workers talked about long hours members are often required to work. Some on the picket line told of one employee who worked 12-hour shifts for 20 straight days.
"Do people make mistakes when they're tired? Absolutely. It won't always result in explosions, though," said one picket, Ralph Ford.
Dean said BP Whiting uses a standard 12-hour shift for operations roles. The standard schedule for operations to work is seven days out of every 14-day period, and the majority of maintenance positions work standard eight-hour shifts, five-days a week, he said.
"BP Whiting follows a fatigue management policy that protects workers from overusing overtime opportunities, by limiting the amount of consecutive days that the USW employees can work," Dean added.
Danko said while overtime isn't always mandatory, if one person refuses to put in more hours, other employees will have to make up the slack since there are so few employees there.
"Instead of one person being tired, everyone is," he said.
Danko said other issues are the company's desire to use nonunion contractors when union employees retire and the company's proposal to strip Local 7-1 of its bargaining rights.
"We won't be able to bargain safety issues if we're stripped of our bargaining rights. We don't want to be a paper union," Danko said.
Regarding outside contractors, USW spokesman Wayne Ranick said contractors receive less training than the regular workforce, are less familiar with the plant and the hazards, and often are less willing to complain about safety and refuse unsafe work.
"Addressing safety issues is critical for workers on the job and for communities surrounding the refineries," Ranick said.
Dean countered that all employees and contractors receive orientation and annual refresher courses regarding safety procedures at the refinery, with no exceptions.
Dean noted that the Whiting Refinery Modernization Project, which involved more than 10,000 skilled craftsmen from a number of trade unions, took place during this time period.
He said BP believes the management of the refinery should retain the right to use the right mix of trained and skilled craftspeople to ensure the safe and efficient operation of the refinery.
Dean also noted that USW workers at BP receive a total compensation package well in excess of $100,000 per year with an $82,000 base salary, not including overtime, bonuses, company retirement contributions or other benefits, which on average adds well in excess of $20,000 to the total annual compensation package.
Danko said the union bargained for these high-paying jobs.
"What we're saying is, they should be offered to more people in the community," he said.
Danko also said the union has received an outpouring of support from the community, businesses and other unions, with people providing donations of money, food, firewood, hats and other items.
With talks making little headway and not enough money in a strike fund to sustain the union members and their families, he said continued support will be needed for them to pay for just the essentials.
"Diapers would be nice," he said of possible donations.