Unionized BP oil refinery workers picket at Chicago HQ for end of 100-day lockout

As unionized British Petroleum oil refinery workers reached the 100th day of being locked out of their jobs in northwest Indiana, they took the fight to BP’s headquarters in Downtown Chicago to demand the company accept their contract offer.

The 800 locked out workers say their livelihoods are at stake, as well as nearly 100 union jobs that BP insists on laying off at the refinery in Whiting, Indiana.

David Wesolowski, 50, has one of the dozens of union positions that BP wants to eliminate and replace with contractors.

He, along with hundreds of others who rallied outside BP’s Chicago office at 30 S. Wacker on Friday, said BP’s hardball negotiating tactics — and quick move to lock out the workers just two months into contract bargaining — are deeply unfair.

“It’s union busting. It’s a power move,” said Wesolowski, of Bourbonnais, who has worked for 12 years as an in-house carpenter for BP.

Contract negotiations began in January but quickly devolved as BP and workers made offers each considered unacceptable. BP wants to cut certain union jobs and replace them with contractors. Workers asked for pay raises and job protections.

Negotiations escalated in early March as unionized workers went on a rolling 24-hour strike notice. BP said that the day-to-day uncertainty created a safety risk. On March 19, the company locked out roughly 800 employees while negotiations continued. The company has been using contractors to keep the refinery running.

Union representatives highlighted the lopsided power dynamics at play outside BP’s office on Friday. UK-based BP reported $7.5 billion in profit last year, and the company is doing even better because of elevated gas prices prompted by the U.S. war with Iran, the union representatives said. Meanwhile, the workers who are locked out are asking to keep their livelihoods.

BP may have locked out the employees to force the hand of the employees, but it’s not working, said United Steelworkers Local 7-1 President Eric Schultz, who leads the union that represents the workers.

“Every day that they drag our families through the mud, it makes it harder for them to get a contract. Every day, our members are digging in deeper, fortifying themselves. The community continues to come out to support us. They picked the wrong battle with the wrong union,” Schultz said.

The lockout is straining the finances of the workers.

Joe Trevino, 48, a process operator and BP employee of 20 years, lost his Merrillville, Indiana, home earlier this month when a storm tore off the roof. He’s staying in a hotel nearby while he figures things out. Worrying about not having a paycheck makes the whole situation worse, he said.

He’s had to cut back on the type of food he buys, ended his streaming subscriptions and canceled traveling.

“It’s unnecessary,” Trevino said of the lockout. BP “made billions last year … and they’re tying to take from us? … It’s all unnecessary.”

In a statement, BP said, “We value our employees and respect their right to assemble. [BP] is committed to safe, compliant and efficient operations, and we will continue negotiating in good faith with the union. The refinery continues to operate safely, reliably and compliantly, with no impact to operations because of the current labor dispute.”