DETROIT – It’s day one on the picket line for Teamsters Local 283 as it strikes against Marathon in southwest Detroit.
The union previously voted by 95% to authorize the work stoppage.
Roughly 200 Marathon refinery workers hit the picket line, citing labor dispute concerns, including seniority rights, subcontracting language, and union security.
“Michigan is no longer a right-to-work state, so we need union security where everyone is in the union,” said Steve Hicks, president of Teamsters Local 283. “And, of course, wages.”
Despite the workers striking outside of the refinery, it appeared to be business as usual as trucks entered and exited the site.
According to the energy company, it was made aware of the looming strike and launched a contingency plan to rely on temporary replacement workers to sustain operations.
Its contract expired on Jan. 31.
“There’s a lot of folks that we’ve worked with in there for the past 20 years,” said Jesse Dansby, an employee. “Those folks are like family to us as well. We have concerns for them and their safety as well.”
Union workers claim the temporary workers may not be trained to follow protocols safely.
“As you can see, this refinery is kind of a different location than other refineries in the middle of the city, and these guys work here at a safe pace,” said James Fox, secretary and treasurer of Teamsters Local 283.
Marathon said it’s disappointed by the strike.
In a released statement, it read in part:
“The company has negotiated in good faith, but the union thus far has been unwilling to agree to acceptable terms for an agreement and, instead, has announced its intention to strike in support of its bargaining positions.”
Meanwhile, it expects no supply disruptions, given it’s still fully operable.
GasBuddy believes it’s unlikely the strike could affect Michigan drivers.
“Unless this is sort of an exceptional event, or it turns to an exception event, or are there are refinery issues that are exacerbated by the labor strike,” said Gas Analyst Patrick De Hann. “I wouldn’t really expect any sort of action or impact to gasoline, diesel, or jet fuel prices at all.”
